Win (Dragon) Roerich N.K. (Part 5)

A description of Nikolai Roerich’s painting Victory

Roerich has a unique, "Bogatyr" series of paintings dedicated to World War II. Two canvases from this series are in the Novosibirsk gallery. One of them is called "Victory".

The painting was made in 1942. The war was in full swing, the hardest days of the Leningrad blockade were still ahead. But Moscow was defended. Partly this victory and is dedicated to the painting by NK Roerich.

In the center of the picture - bogatyr, who killed the dragon. Quite a classic story, known in many countries and variations. Roerich gave this plot a new meaning.

Bogatyr is a typical Old Russian warrior in armor corresponding to the era. The dragon (probably, Zmey Gorynych, but with one head) is a dark green monster with colors reminiscent of Reich military uniforms. As a background the artist used the highest peak of Siberia, Belukha.

Sunrise. The sun is already flooding one side of Belukha, and will soon move higher. The significance of the situation is emphasized by the dawning scarlet sky that occupies about a third of the painting. A small platform on one of the mountains.

The Battle of Moscow is one of the first battles where divisions coming from Siberia took part. And the warrior himself is a Siberian, with eastern features, wearing medieval armor.

For Roerich, a bogatyr is, first and foremost, strength and power. Like the dragon - because the artist lived so many years in the East. The man who killed the dragon himself can barely stand. There is no jubilation or pathos; there is only weariness and a sense of accomplishment, joy and anxiety. Joy - that he has won after all. Anxiety that another head might grow or another dragon might fly in.

In 1975 the youngest son of the artist donated the painting to the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. In the donation it was specifically noted that in this picture Roerich tried to express faith in the victory and a great future for all.