Vasily Dmitrievich Polenov ranks among the most talented artists of the Russian school of painting. Being a professor of the Academy of Arts, a participant in quite a few Itinerant Art Exhibitions, Polenov educated the whole generation of remarkable artists, with Icaac Levitan, Konstantin Korovin, Mikhail Nesterov and others among them.
The story of the landscape Castalian Gorge, which came from the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, is closely connected with its creation. Polenov knew the founder of the museum, Ivan Vladimirovich Tsvetaev, and was actively involved in the organisational committee. According to Polenov’s concept, the interior was expected to be decorated with panel paintings depicting the views of Egypt, Greece, Palestine and Italy. The landscapes were supposed to graphically reinforce the artefacts — originals and copies of pieces by great artists of the past. He developed the programme of paintings, made lists of proposed pictures and looked for painters to do these panels. He planned to paint the views of Egypt, Greece and Palestine by himself. But, unfortunately, the project preparation took too long, and for various reasons this fascinating idea never came true. But a few Greek studies survived, with Castalian Gorge among them and now kept in the collection of the Radishchev Museum.
The picture portrays the Faidriades Rocks divided by a deep gorge and located in the vicinity of Delphi. In Greek mythology, Python, a deadful serpent-dragon, lived in that area and was eventually defeated by Apollo. A church was built there in honour of Apollo. At the bottom of the gorge there was a famous Castalian Spring, seen by many as sacred. Polenov’s landscape fully portrays the grandeur and power of the ancient land. The huge bluish grey and brown Faidriades Rocks fill the entire canvas, the sky is only a narrow strip. Painted on a rough, poorly coated canvas, this huge study was expected to be perceived from an extended distance. Polenov’s favourite colour palette, combining intense bluish and dark blue with deep green and silver-brown shades, makes the landscape especially impressive.
