Student 1976

Sergiy Grigoriev made this oil painting with visible brushstrokes, like the way he created those broad horizontal bars in the background. I imagine Grigoriev must have felt a real connection with his subject. It feels so personal. The girl in the painting could have been someone he knew, maybe a family member or a neighbor. It’s interesting to see how he built up the textures, especially in her jacket. The paint is applied thickly, giving it a tactile, almost sculptural quality. Look at the scarf, and how the brushstrokes capture the way it drapes. It really brings the whole piece to life. Painters build on each other's work. It’s this constant dialogue across time, where one artist picks up an idea from another and takes it in a new direction. It’s a process of reinterpretation and innovation. And it keeps painting alive, right?