Samarkand 1921

Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin gave us 'Samarkand' with a brush full of greens and browns, painting a hilly view with a winding river. I imagine Petrov-Vodkin, standing at his easel, wrestling with that perspective, tilting the world just so. It's like he’s saying, “Let’s see this place from a new angle, challenge our assumptions.” The paint isn’t thick and luscious, but more like a stain, a veil over the canvas, which makes me think of early modernist painters like Cezanne, also trying to capture the essence of place. It’s like he’s sifting through layers of earth, history, and memory. Those tiny figures snaking along the path—are they travelers, pilgrims, or ghosts? And that tower in the background—a silent witness to centuries of change. Petrov-Vodkin's piece reminds us that every painting is a question, an invitation to see the world anew, and continue the conversation.