It was in his younger years that Alexander Gerasimov first read the works by Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol. The artist recalled, “A friend and neighbor of mine once gave me Gogol’s Stories with drawings by Igor Khrabrov (pseudonym of Igor Grabar — ed.) to read. An illustration for ‘Christmas Eve’ with Oksana in front of the mirror had the strongest effect on me. At once I decided to copy this beauty. Soon the door of the barn, where I usually slept in the summer, had an almost full-length image of Oksana on it, painted in oils.”
Years passed. Alexander Mikhailovich Gerasimov worked as a decorator in the Kozlov Drama Theater (1918–1925). It was then that the first sketches for Taras Bulba appeared. The artist recalled, “During the tours of Ukrainian theater companies, at intermissions or when the actor was free from going on stage, I made sketches, as I had long dreamed of illustrating Taras Bulba. Later, those sketches turned out to be very useful to me.”
The artist gives his full attention to the theme of “Taras Bulba” in the 1940s. In 1947, at the Spring Exhibition of Moscow Painters and Sculptors, three large colorful “Taras Bulba” gouache compositions were presented. By illustrating the famous story from the Mirgorod cycle, the artist fulfilled his long-held aspiration, while performing a series of sketches from life. As a draft for the image of Taras, the book’s main character, he used his own photographs as the basis for sketches. His approach to illustrating the book correlated with the patriotic idea of the story. The artist recreated the plot as one of the most memorable historical events, where the national liberation struggle is expressed with extraordinary power. It is worth mentioning that Alexander Gerasimov did not consider himself a professional illustrator while giving due credit to the skills of professional graphic illustrators. However, he believed that this exciting opportunity to show one’s art in a book, in hundreds of thousands of copies, to reveal the plot of the work with rich means of color, could also encourage an easel artist.
Years passed. Alexander Mikhailovich Gerasimov worked as a decorator in the Kozlov Drama Theater (1918–1925). It was then that the first sketches for Taras Bulba appeared. The artist recalled, “During the tours of Ukrainian theater companies, at intermissions or when the actor was free from going on stage, I made sketches, as I had long dreamed of illustrating Taras Bulba. Later, those sketches turned out to be very useful to me.”
The artist gives his full attention to the theme of “Taras Bulba” in the 1940s. In 1947, at the Spring Exhibition of Moscow Painters and Sculptors, three large colorful “Taras Bulba” gouache compositions were presented. By illustrating the famous story from the Mirgorod cycle, the artist fulfilled his long-held aspiration, while performing a series of sketches from life. As a draft for the image of Taras, the book’s main character, he used his own photographs as the basis for sketches. His approach to illustrating the book correlated with the patriotic idea of the story. The artist recreated the plot as one of the most memorable historical events, where the national liberation struggle is expressed with extraordinary power. It is worth mentioning that Alexander Gerasimov did not consider himself a professional illustrator while giving due credit to the skills of professional graphic illustrators. However, he believed that this exciting opportunity to show one’s art in a book, in hundreds of thousands of copies, to reveal the plot of the work with rich means of color, could also encourage an easel artist.
