Information about the work
The canvas An Ordinary Village [Zvychaine Selo] (Canvas, oil, 1990; entered the collection of the Sumy Regional Art Museum in 1990) leans toward the painterly tradition of the lyrical landscape, enriched with elements of abstraction and decorativeness. Before us is a rural landscape where a courtyard with cottages and trees unfolds behind a wattle fence. To the left stands a small white cottage, backed by a larger, red one. In the center sits a yellowish barn behind a small gray cottage, and to the right stands a haystack. In the background are black, leafless trees, while the foreground is unevenly scattered with multicolored abstract dabs of paint. The background of the canvas (sky and earth) is rendered in nearly identical greenish-gray tones. The compositional center is shifted toward the middle—a small cottage with a thatched roof, surrounded by auxiliary elements: fences, trees, and outbuildings. Space is organized horizontally, transitioning smoothly from the foreground to the midground (architecture) and further into a background of blurred silhouettes. The lines of the fences and paths establish depth, guiding the viewer’s gaze into the interior of the painting. The absence of human figures lends the scene a sense of solitude—not dramatic, but rather meditative.
A subdued, somewhat muted palette dominates, featuring gray-green, brown, and yellowish tones. The lighting is diffused, devoid of harsh shadows—characteristic of overcast weather. The sky exhibits a yellowish-greenish hue, creating an atmosphere of anxious quietness during a late-afternoon state. The painterly style is generalized: rather than articulating crisp details, the artist builds the forms of objects through color patches and soft transitions in a post-impressionistic manner. These contrasting accents are rendered freely, almost abstractly. Such color patches expand the space while simultaneously creating a reflective plane, heightening the feeling of tranquility, contemplative stillness, timelessness, and profound emotionality.
For the artist, literal precision of depiction is subordinate to the impressions and feelings evoked by what is observed. Rather than describing a specific location, he communicates a mood—silence, peace, a certain nostalgia, and memory. The master works not with micro-details, but with emotional generalization, utilizing light, color, and reflections to construct a cohesive image of the rural environment.