Boris and Gleb 1943

Nicholas Roerich made this small painting, Boris and Gleb, with tempera on cardboard. You know, looking at it, I'm reminded that painting is just pushing stuff around – but here, Roerich makes it seem like so much more. The mountains, for example, aren't just blue; they’re built up with these tiny, deliberate strokes. It’s almost pointillist, but with this rugged, earthy feel. And that water? It’s like he’s captured a mood, a stillness, more than just a surface. I'm really drawn to the way the muted oranges and blues meet in the sky, it gives the whole scene a dreamlike quality. It’s a really restrained palette but it does so much work. The way the two figures are placed in the boat, you get a sense of journey, maybe even pilgrimage. Roerich often uses landscape to evoke spiritual themes. You see a similar approach in the work of Marsden Hartley, where landscape becomes a vehicle for conveying inner states and philosophical ideas. Art really becomes a conversation across time, each artist adding their voice.