Portrait of N. Yakunchikova 1882

Vasily Polenov's 1882 "Portrait of N. Yakunchikova" is a watercolor painting that captures a woman in a moment of artistic creation. The subject, dressed in a dark green jacket and blue skirt, sits outdoors, her face obscured by a large, sun-protective hat. Her focus is on a painting in front of her, a simple, almost skeletal representation of a landscape. The composition and loose, painterly brushstrokes characterize Polenov's style of Realism, highlighting the everyday and capturing the artist's subject in a natural, unidealized light.