Sofia 1958

Yuriy Khymych made this watercolour painting, Sofia, with paper and brush, capturing a place, a feeling, a memory. The soft greys and blues create a damp, chilly atmosphere, typical of early spring. Khymych uses watercolour in such a way that the architecture seems to emerge from the mist; you can see the cathedral behind the screen of bare trees, its domes glowing faintly. The paint is applied thinly, almost translucent in places, allowing the texture of the paper to show through. Notice how the puddles in the foreground reflect the sky and surrounding buildings. This layering of reflections and half-seen forms creates a sense of depth and distance. Khymych was an accomplished artist, known for his cityscapes of Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities. In some ways it reminds me of Corot, who also captured the quiet beauty of everyday life in his paintings. Both artists invite us to slow down and appreciate the subtle nuances of light, color, and form. There is no single way to see the work, the beauty is in the atmospheric ambiguity.