1.06.1844 – 18.07.1927

In the meeting of VOHM them. I. Kramskoy is a small sketch of “The Head of a Jew,” written for the painting “Christ and the Sinner”. We can say that this painting occupies a central place in the work of the famous Russian painter Vasily Polenov. The plot of this picture was conceived by the artist even in the years of study at the Academy of Arts, but the development of the idea took a long time. The plot, a completely academic, biblical scene, is interpreted by the artist in a different way than was accepted. Polenov took an unexpected compositional decision, thereby shifting the emphasis and history itself. The central group of the narrative is Christ and his disciples, however, in the picture this group is not central. The viewer’s view is chained to the accuser and the accused, who was brought to court by force, can see how she rests, unwilling to go. The artist does not just illustrate the biblical story, but asks the viewer, “Who among you without sin?”, That’s what Polenov originally called it. Censorship renamed it, and now this work is known precisely so – “Christ and the Sinner”.

Vasily Polenov was born in St. Petersburg on June 1, 1844 in an old noble family, his father, Dmitry Vasilyevich, was a famous historian and an archeologist, and his mother, Maria Alekseevna, was a children’s writer and artist.

Polenov is a multi-genre painter. His brushes belong to both historical and religious paintings, and landscape and everyday, his theatrical and decorative works are known, he fruitfully collaborated in Moscow with the private opera of Savva Mamontov.

According to the sketches of Vasily Polenov, churches were built in Abramtsevo and in Bekhov near Tarusa. But still the greatest glory of the artist brought landscape works, glorifying the beauty of Russian nature.

The last years of his life the artist spent in Borok mansion, where he organized a museum of art and scientific collections. Here, since 1927, the museum-estate of VD Polenov operates.