Painting is a unique art form. With the help of paints, brushes and pencils, artists can transfer us to the distant past, draw what can happen in centuries and capture events that in a moment will become history. Painting is clearer than music, and often its meaning is clearer and more transparent than that of verbal images. It requires one thing from the viewer - “complicity”, empathy, inclusion in that dumb dialogue that the artist leads with us.
Plastov - singer of people's Russia
Arkady Plastov belongs to that wonderful galaxy of brush masters who left a deep mark in Russian art. His canvases are deeply folk because they reflect the life of a simple person with all its uncomplicated events. And together they form a great chronicle of the country, difficult and heroic. "Peasant Russia" is the protagonist of all his works. And these are not only people, but also nature. She is not just a background that helps to reveal the plot, but a full participant in all events. The proof of this is the description of the picture “Harvest” by A. Plastov.
History of creation
The canvas was painted in 1945, which is very important for the country. The last months of the war, the passionate expectation of victory and the enduring pain and bitterness from the fact that many have died on its fields and will not return - these are the main moods of that time. All this can be felt through the description of the painting “Harvest” by Plastov, which is located in the famous Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow. The artist worked on canvas with oil, the dimensions of the canvas are quite large - 166x219 cm. The historical basis of the work is not accidental in the work of the master. Before the "Harvest" he wrote another, amazingly tragic, picture - "The Fascist Has Arrived." And although there are no obvious signs of war on the canvas of interest to us, it is still conveyed through the general color. Let’s try to feel it through the description of the painting “Harvest” by Plastov.
Web Feature
In the foreground of the picture we see a group of people. This is an old collective farmer and three children. They dine, having finished their hard peasant labor. The man is already quite old, his beard is almost completely white, and his thick hair, swept by the wind and arguing work, is completely intertwined with a cobweb of gray hair. Immediately the description of the picture “Reaping” by Plastov prompts such reflections: why should the old man, who has already given his life and land to his whole life, instead of rest, have to overwork himself so excessively? More about this later, but for now we continue to consider the hero of the work.
The artist carefully painted out his hardened, callused hands, darkened by work. In one he holds a piece of black bread, in the other - a wooden spoon, which gently slurps uncomplicated food from a reddish
clay pot. The collective farmer threw an old, worn dark brown coat over his shoulders, a blue canvas shirt was visible underneath. On his feet are old broken shoes. Continuing the essay on the film "Harvest" by Plastov, we draw attention to its other heroes. These are two boys and a girl, children 10-12 years old. Maybe this is a grandfather with his grandchildren. The girl who sits closest to us. She tied her head with a white chintz handkerchief, from under which two braids touching down a thin neck are touchingly knocked out. The forehead is covered with a light bang that is burnt out in the sun. A dark blouse, a red dress, stockings on legs drawn under oneself and cherry-colored boots - that’s the whole granddaughter’s simple outfit. In her hand is her spoon. Leaning slightly toward the pot, she eats a liquid peasant stew, which in the war years was a real treat. Behind her is her brother - a red-haired, curly-haired guy. Scissors had not touched his head for a long time - either once, or maybe there was no one to put his head in order. And again, I recall: the war, after all, and you never know where the mother of the kids is ... The little boy is also focused on food, like his relatives. But the third of the children fell to the clay jug and eagerly drinks water or milk. He is wearing a white shirt, dark pants. It can be seen that he was tired very much and was thirsty, not even eating! The fifth hero of the picture is a common favorite, a funny doggie. He stares at the diners, looking forward to when his turn comes.
Background picture
The picture “Reaping” by Plastov is a story about a dramatic battle for the harvest of those who remained in the rear during the war years and helped with all their might to forge a victory, providing the front and civilians with the most important thing - bread. That's why the old man had to in his advanced years, and the kids who would run to school, take up the forks and rakes, scythes and sickles, that their adult sons, fathers and brothers, and even mothers went to war - to defend their homeland. So plow, sow, mow, work, exhausted, those who stayed. To the left of the diners is a large freshly bred stack, on which braids, rakes and other agricultural equipment are piled up. In the background stretches an endless field and the same huge stacks. And above all this stands a gray, pre-stormy sky. Apparently, due to bad weather, grandfather and grandchildren were in a hurry to harvest. That’s why the picture “Harvest” is called. Warm golden tones give it a special touch. From the canvas it blows with a deep sincere love for people and for the Motherland.