Skyline 

Konstantin Korobov created this painting, Skyline, using oil on canvas. At first glance, we see an image of melancholy, a muted seascape and a bleached whale bone. The artist seems to be inviting us to consider the relationship between nature and culture, or perhaps nature as culture. The work was created in Russia, a nation struggling to define itself after the end of the Soviet era. Perhaps we can read the painting as an allegory of Russia itself, a land of great beauty and natural resources, but also of great loss. What are the institutions that might give such a vision a place in the contemporary world? Understanding the historical context in which a work of art was created, along with the resources available to the artist, allows us to see that art is not simply a product of individual genius but a reflection of the society in which it was made.