The palace and the harbor 1909

Konstantin Alexeevich Korovin created “The Palace and the Harbor” with paint applied on canvas. Rather than opting for realism, Korovin uses broad strokes, focusing on the textures and colors of the scene. The weight and depth of the paint create a sense of immediacy, almost as if the scene were captured in a fleeting moment. Notice how the brushstrokes are visible, and how the colors blend and merge to evoke a sense of atmosphere and light. This approach rejects the conventions of academic painting, which prioritized meticulous detail and finish. Korovin instead embraces a more expressive style, aligned with the impressionist movement, highlighting the labor involved in applying the paint to the canvas. Through material and process, Korovin elevates the act of painting itself, underscoring how artistic choices reflect broader social shifts and a changing relationship to labor and production. This invites us to reconsider traditional hierarchies between fine art and craft.