Supported by The Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation
RU / EN
Supported by The Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation

Nicholas Konstantinovich Roerich

Main name
Yaroslavl. Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
1903
oil on plywood
30×39,5 cm
25742 КП
5494 II
Location of the works
The State Museum of Oriental Art

Yaroslavl is one of the oldest Russian cities. N.K. Roerich dedicated to it seven sketches of churches – those of Nicholas the Wet, Epiphany, Nativity of the Virgin, Ivan the Baptist, and Vlasy. In the architectural series, Roerich showed himself to be an excellent master of color. The domes are blue against the background of the bright sky and the golden reflections of sunlight burn on the bulbs like lights. The wooden buildings, darkened by time, seem to have absorbed all the rains and met all the winds of centuries… With all their brightness, richness, the tones are a little muffled, not flashy, revealing the true nobility of the monuments, lit by the patina of time.

The artist writes only the upper part of the building of the Church of the Nativity of Christ, highlighting the domes, emphasizing their silhouette. It is evident Nikolay Konstantinovich cherish every detail of the old building, and he skillfully chooses the most characteristic turn to unobtrusively draw our attention to individual patterned details of the building, to show their lightness and beauty.