276. KONSTANTIN KOROVIN. Gurzuf. Bouquet of roses by the sea. 1917.

Konstantin Korovin. Gurzuf. Bouquet of roses by the sea. One of the magical and bewitching works from the Crimean paradise, chosen by the artist, where the master visits from 1910 to 1917. Angle cuts into the composition: a table under the tablecloth, apples and a triumphant bouquet of roses. Here, in the open sun, where the haze of the tablecloth and the heat of the pebbles, almost completely vibrating, merge, the bouquet sounds like a hymn to half a day of life and trembling happiness. At the table, the verdant coolness of the terrace and the burning heat of the sun-bleached, pebble beach converge in cross lines. Even further away, the artist embraces with a sliding glance, from a low horizon, the familiar panorama of Gurzuf. Follows the arc of the sea, the houses of the town, behind the rocky cape, covering the diagonal of the perspective. Under the artists brush, a fluttering breath of air fills the reflexes and halftones of the tablecloth. The edges of the plate and shadows, the shiny buds acquire a symphonic, all-conquering radiance. This clever admiration for the world continues with the most complex lilac veil on the distant rocks. The lasting fullness of happiness becomes the main character of the work. It combines the concreteness of a still life with the atmosphere of a hot day, including the bustling presence of people by the sea and on the terrace. Thus the artist accepts happiness in all the complexity of being. With a deeply Orthodox thought that happiness cannot be isolated at the expense of others. This is the rarest gift of a thinker who has approached an obvious but insoluble topic, accessible only to people of a pure heart and a great moral mind. Authors signature and date in the lower right corner of the picture. Const. Korovin. 1917. Oil on canvas. 54x73 cm.