Vasilii Perov - hunter and an artist

Who is Vasilii Perov ?

Vasilii Grigorovich Perov was a Russian artist and one of the founders of Peredvizniki - a group of Russian realist painters. He was a passionate hunter and because of that he was familiar with the hunting theme.  In the year of 1870 he drew the painting "Птицелов"(Birds hunting) for which he receives title-professor and starts working in the Moscow School of Arts. Other paintings with hunting themes are "Fishing" (1871), "Botanic" (1874), "Pigeon" (1874), "Fishery" (1878).

                                                                                          "Птицелов"(1870)

Without a doubt the most famous painting from the hunting theme of Perov is "Охотники на привале"       ( Hunters at Rest) the painting was drew in  1871 one year after the "Birds hunting" which makes him a professor. The plot of the painting is simple, but that doesn't change the fact that it is a masterpiece. On the canvas there are three people. From the left there are a mature man wearing an aristocratic clothes, he looks like an experienced hunter and it is talking passionately about his past hunting trips. The second man is middle-aged dressed with simple clothes with a smile and disbelief is listening to the story of the aristocrat. The third man is a young man wearing  new clothes and naively with trembling is listening to the story and even forgets to lit his cigarette. The whole scene takes place on the background of a dark autumn landscape, which brings a disturbing shade of the comic content of the paining.

                                                                                  "Охотники на привале"(1871)

Dostoevski in one of his journal mention the painting:

Everyone knows about this painting "Hunters at Rest" for a long time. One passionately and knowingly lying, the other listens and believes with all his might, and the third does not believe anything, lay right there and laugh ... What a beauty!