Ukrainian 1868

Curator: Just look at that horse! And the landscape dissolving into the background—it's almost melancholic, don't you think? Editor: Indeed. What we’re seeing is "Ukrainian," a watercolor by Henryk Rodakowski, painted in 1868. He captured a moment, a mood, beyond just a likeness. Curator: I feel like I'm watching a scene from a play, a Romantic drama where the lead is about to embark on a bittersweet journey. The softness of the watercolor adds to the feeling—almost as if the memory of it is fading. The colors are so earthy, grounded. Editor: Rodakowski was a master of conveying psychological depth. What might strike some is just the picturesque aspect, the exotic subject, but there is a deep concern with issues of national identity and social change in Rodakowski's artistic endeavors, which may also be traced in the history of Ukraine. Curator: It makes you wonder what this figure was feeling. Was he yearning for something more? A distant land? I wish I knew what was going on in his head. Or if he really needed such an oversized coat. Editor: Clothing became, at the time, highly important social marker. I’m not quite sure that Rodakowski’s artistic practice really allowed room for a sense of humor… These paintings, often, became powerful political tools for consolidating group identity during that period. Curator: Right, a powerful man, on a powerful steed. I love when art transports you somewhere. I feel like I can almost smell the damp earth in this painting! It is almost too pretty. Editor: Yes. So we have, in summary, an image deeply connected to Romanticism. I feel, and I hope, we did open some space for reflection, so people can look with more profound comprehension to it. Curator: Me too. Looking at it again, I feel the windswept freedom and wistful heart, very present for a watercolor made 150 years ago.