Pskov in Winter 1922

Konstantin Gorbatov made this painting ‘Pskov in Winter’ sometime in the 1920s using oil paint, and what strikes me is the freshness of the blues and whites. This isn't a photograph, it’s a feeling of winter. Up close, you can see how Gorbatov layered strokes of pure colour to build up a shimmering surface. Look at the way he suggests the weight of snow on the branches, with these confident flicks of white – it’s like he’s building the scene right in front of us, one brushstroke at a time. The paint isn’t blended so much as placed, allowing each colour to vibrate against the next. There's something about this painting that reminds me of Childe Hassam, with a similar celebration of atmosphere, of finding the extraordinary within the everyday. Ultimately, this painting embraces the beauty of not knowing, of letting the paint itself lead the way. It’s not about what we see, but how we see.