Portrait MF Petrova – Vodkin. 1907 Kuzma Sergeevich Petrov-Vodkin (1878-1939)

Description of Kuzma Petrov Vodkin’s Portrait of M. F. Petrova Vodkina

Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin’s paintings are rightly considered the first examples of the socialist realism genre. Many of his paintings of the Bolshevik period are indeed memorable and remain etched in one’s memory forever--but his most striking works are undoubtedly his portraits. Using very scarce resources, the artist was able to convey the characters of his characters so precisely that no additional methods were required.

Maria Feodorovna, the artist’s wife, was for him a constant and permanent model. There are several portraits of her painted at different times, different in mood, but the 1907 portrait is undoubtedly the best known and most characteristic. It is the first portrait of Maria, painted after she became the artist’s wife. Kuzma married late, having spent many years alone before that, so he did not dote on his wife. Maria’s real name was Mara, she lived in France, where the artist and met her - but she married Petrov-Vodkin, took his name and added to the name of a Russian patronymic - her father’s name was Theodore.

The picture shows a young woman in the dark, a little sad. Life did not spoil Kuzma and his wife - the paintings did not sell well, there was no money, and the young wife’s hopes for a life of ease with a famous artist immediately crashed to dust. But she stoically endured everything that befell her and her husband. A smart, patient, and in every way positive woman - that is how we see Maria in the portrait painted by her husband.