Landscape From the Cycle 'Suite, Inspired by Pushkin's Lyrics' 1968

Hryhorii Havrylenko conjured this landscape from the 'Suite, Inspired by Pushkin's Lyrics' using soft, muted tones. Look at the subtle gradations of grey and the way the surface seems to dissolve into a hazy distance. I imagine Havrylenko, lost in thought, his mind echoing with Pushkin's verses. The paint is applied in thin washes, like watercolor, allowing light to permeate the image, giving it an ethereal quality. There’s a delicate balance between representation and abstraction. Notice the horizon line, barely discernible. It’s as if the artist is suggesting a space between worlds, a liminal zone where sky meets land, where the tangible blurs into the infinite. This reminds me of the landscapes of Symbolist painters, who sought to evoke feeling and mood through subtle shifts in color and form. In the studio, I try to allow the process to guide me, embracing the unpredictable and allowing the painting to evolve organically. It's like a conversation, a call and response between the artist and the canvas. These conversations echo through time, each artist responding to those who came before, creating a rich and complex dialogue across generations.