North 1890

Curator: Before us hangs "North", painted by Konstantin Alexeevich Korovin in 1890. The medium is oil on canvas. Editor: It feels so heavy, doesn’t it? All those layers of gray and the way the boats seem almost swallowed by the fog...it’s beautiful, melancholic even. Curator: The limited palette indeed emphasizes the harsh working conditions of northern harbors at the end of the 19th century. What strikes me is how Korovin, firmly embedded in the Russian avant-garde movement, is already subtly challenging traditional landscape painting here. Look at the thickness of the impasto and how that directly informs the mood of cold desolation. Editor: He definitely conveys the feeling of being utterly alone in a vast expanse of grayness. Almost like the boats are holding their breath. You can almost feel the dampness clinging to everything. Did Korovin spend much time in northern ports? Curator: Indeed. He traveled extensively, and his encounter with the realities of labor and life in these ports clearly influenced his artistic direction, which you see here in the treatment of materiality. We see the subject's relationship to industry; in painting boats in this setting, he's acknowledging the means by which society at large benefited, even while some had to toil in harsh conditions. Editor: I hadn’t thought about that aspect, but it does make me wonder what it would have been like to live there. What was Korovin really seeing in that North harbor? Curator: Perhaps this work also shows his broader effort to capture and give material form to transient moments. Notice the texture and brushstrokes and how this contributes to that idea. Editor: True, and seeing the weight and struggle that might inspire it does also bring the beauty and skill in presenting those details to the fore. Curator: Ultimately, this work showcases that the role of artistic expression isn't limited to aesthetic appeal. Instead, Korovin makes that expression useful as well. Editor: I guess you’re right. Seeing it this way makes me appreciate the weight, the almost grim beauty of the piece, even more. Thanks for your insight.