Illustration to Sergey Yesenin's collection of poems 'Bird-cherry tree' 1970

Hryhorii Havrylenko made this illustration to Sergey Yesenin's 'Bird-cherry tree' using watercolor, and you can tell it’s all about the flow. The thin washes of colour bleeding into each other are just gorgeous. Looking closely, you can almost feel the wetness of the paint, the way the green and yellow blend, creating soft edges and hazy shapes. Notice the horizontal bands across the middle, how they suggest a reflection on water. It's like the whole scene is shimmering, slightly out of focus, which gives it a dreamlike quality. The texture is smooth, almost translucent, allowing the paper to breathe beneath. This reminds me of Agnes Martin, who also used delicate washes of color to create ethereal landscapes. But where Martin is all about control and precision, Havrylenko seems to embrace chance and spontaneity. It's a reminder that art doesn't always need to be loud or flashy. Sometimes, the quietest voices are the most powerful.