Aleko
Fine art expert comment

Aleko, “despising the shackles of modernity”, is captured by the vortex of the gypsies’ lifestyle. One can’t help comparing this work with Philip Malyavin’s The Whirlwind. But if Malyavin’s work depicts the mighty element of people’s life, being a hymn for liberty and emancipation of feeling, here we can see burning passion that paralyses the hero. Composition expands diagonally inwards, leading us to the source of light that remains invisible though its highlights are reflecting on characters’ faces and clothes. The painter creates rather tense pictorial fabric using the widest range of red tinges and bringing in daring contrasts. Dynamic pastose manner of painting intensifies the sense of inner conflict. The author was able not only to create a highly professional work but to offer an unusual and very subtle interpretation of the well-known plot.