Village Maureeno, Kostroma 1905

Boris Kustodiev made this painting of Village Maureeno, Kostroma, using oil on canvas. It’s amazing how the dark greens and blacks in the foreground give way to the softer greens and greys of the village itself, like the landscape is exhaling! The brushstrokes are loose and visible, especially in the trees. You can almost feel the artist's hand moving across the canvas, blocking out the shapes. Look closely at the way he renders the sky - that thin, pale yellow line right on the horizon. It gives the whole painting this eerie, dreamlike quality, which reminds me of some of the landscapes by Corot, who could also find the sublime in the everyday. Ultimately, art is always just a conversation between different sensibilities.