Merchant 1923

Boris Kustodiev painted this work, Merchant, with oil. Kustodiev isn't trying to blend everything together; instead, the textures and colors stay distinct, each dab of paint visible, reminding us of the handmade quality of the art. The brushstrokes are confident but not fussy, giving the whole piece a lively feel. Look at the merchant's beard—it's not just a beard, it’s a flurry of white strokes, each one catching the light differently, almost like he’s made of soft snow. The way the paint handles light and shadow makes the scene jump to life, which makes you think about the person’s life, what they were like, how they lived. You can see echoes of artists like Chaim Soutine in Kustodiev's approach, but with a Russian twist. It's like they're all talking to each other across time, sharing ideas about how to capture the messy, beautiful stuff of life in paint.