Edvard Yakovlevich Vyrzhikovsky was a painter, an Honored Artist of the Russian Federation, and a member of the St. Petersburg Union of Artists. He was born in Irkutsk in 1928.

In 1948, Edvard Vyrzhikovsky graduated from the Secondary Art School in Leningrad. That same year, he enrolled at the Ilya Repin Institute of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture. There, his teachers included the painter and graphic artist Pyotr Petrovich Belousov, the painter and teacher Alexander Dmitrievich Zaitsev, and the artist Boris Vladimirovich Ioganson.

Edvard Vyrzhikovsky began exhibiting his works in 1952.

In the 1950s–1960s, the artist traveled extensively to Russian historical cities including Pskov. Throughout his creative career, he explored many genres but remained focused on landscape.

In 1960, he created the painting “Pskov”, inspired by his trips to this ancient Russian city. He painted it on a large canvas and used a horizontal composition that resembled the layout of an open book or album.

The painting depicts the Trinity Bridge over the Pskova River which connects the city center with the area called Zapskovye. The bridge is crowded with pedestrians and vehicles. There is a horse with a cart loaded with boxes. Behind it, there is a cyclist and a truck. A group of children with their teacher is also visible.

The Trinity Bridge was named at the suggestion of Ivan Ivanovich Gitz who owned the Trinity Pharmacy in the house of Ilya Alexandrovich Safyanschikov. The Pskov City Duma approved the suggestion.

Behind the bridge, at the fork of two streets, there is an ancient Church of Saints Cosmas and Damian Near the Bridge and houses on both sides of the streets. To the right, in the background, the bell tower and the upper part of the Orthodox Church of the Epiphany can be seen through the greenery of trees. On the right, there is the Pskova River.

The painting is permanently kept by the Pskov Museum Reserve. It was previously displayed at the “Soviet Russia” exhibition in 1960.

Between 1989 and 1992, the works of Edvard Vyrzhikovsky were showcased at exhibitions and auctions of Russian painting “L’ Ecole de Leningrad” in France, where they were met with critical acclaim. In 2001, Edvard Vyrzhikovsky received the honorary title of an Honored Artist of the Russian Federation. His works can be found in galleries and private collections not only in Russia but also abroad, including the UK, Venezuela, China, USA, Germany, and other countries.