The artist Yakov Wunder was a Volga German. He became one of the key figures in the Vorkuta art scene of the mid-20th century. At the age of 23, Yakov Wunder was reported to the authorities, arrested, and sent to labor camps in the Russian North for ten years. The young painter served as an unskilled worker at the First Brick Factory and later at the Drama Theater where he stayed after his release as a scenic designer.

Searching for new experiences, Yakov Wunder joined the Vorkuta Geological Survey Expedition. This decision inspired the artist and determined his fate. According to his wife Mariya, in his later years, Yakov Wunder painted “two truckloads of paintings and sometimes would get so exhausted that he could hardly hold the brush anymore”.

Yakov Wunder’s studies, drawings, and photos can be used to study the geography of the Russian North. He captured the landscapes of the tundra, the Kara Sea coast, the Ural Mountains, the northern rivers, Vaygach Island, Cape Greben, Mount Manaraga, and the Vashutkin Lakes.

Yakov Wunder painted this study titled “The Urals” during a geological expedition. It is a pure mountain landscape created using a cold, muted color palette. The artist’s calm contemplation and respectful attitude to nature evoke a sense of otherness. Although it is a study, the painting reflects the monumental grandeur of the Polar Urals which form the northern part of the Ural Mountains.

Valentina Zolotova, a participant of Wunder’s last expedition, recalled the day when the artist went missing in September 1966,