These workers, often employees of the state, produced monumental canvasses in a trained academic style, with humanistic and socialist themes. Here we have striking compositional features such as isolated elements juxtaposed with impinging shapes, attention to negative areas, thoughtful distortions, spirited lineups with foreground and background interaction, playful lapses, and a grandiose power of design. Soviet painters may have been in the grip of nineteenth century shibboleths and forced for their livelihood to cater to the politics of the day, but the works are often academically brilliant. A lot of these paintings have remarkable control of color and light, often achieved by confident and energetic impasto and intelligent scumbling.
Surfaces are professional and deserving of close examination.
The often monochromatic or analagous color schemes simply take your breath away. A few months ago I was in the summer palace of Wallid Jumblatt, one of the rebel warlords of Lebanon. There on the wall of one of the chambers was a recent and massive oil of a couple of Russian officers attempting to control their black and white stallions, one going this way, one the other. This quality piece, undoubtedly a gift from the friendly Russians, was by a master who did not sign his or her name. The Volga Boatmen Many will remember Repin's painting of the knot of peasants dragging a fat scow along the river.