Young Naturalists 1948

Sergiy Grigoriev painted ‘Young Naturalists’ sometime in the mid-20th century with what looks like fairly loose brushwork. The palette is restrained, mostly earth tones, which gives the whole scene this hazy, timeless quality. I'm really drawn to the way the paint seems to almost dissolve into the canvas, particularly in the background landscape. It's so soft and dreamy. There's something about the texture of the paint that makes me think about memory and how it can soften the edges of reality. Look at the way Grigoriev captures the light on the wheat field, how the strokes of paint seem to mimic the movement of the wind. It's like he's not just painting what he sees, but also what he feels. The way the artist handles the light feels very reminiscent of the Impressionists to me, particularly someone like Camille Pissarro who had the same sensitivity to the atmosphere and how it can affect the way we perceive the world. Art's an ongoing conversation, right? One artist speaking to another across time. There’s no right or wrong answer. It’s just a feeling.