Until the end of December, the KGallery in St. Petersburg is showcasing works by Valentin Serov and Konstantin Korovin, many of which have not previously been exhibited to the public.
In Saint Petersburg, the «Serov and Korovin» exhibition has opened, bringing together over a hundred works from private collections, the Russian Museum, and the Museum of Theatre and Musical Art. A significant portion of the exhibits is being presented to the public for the first time. The exhibition is on at KGallery until 31 December 2026.
The exhibition explores the friendship between two artists that lasted nearly a quarter of a century. Serov and Korovin first met in 1884 in Abramtsevo, within the circle of the patron Savva Mamontov. Their creative approaches were markedly different: Serov paid special attention to drawing and the psychological accuracy of portraits, while Korovin became famous for his work with colour and emerged as a leading figure in Russian Impressionism.
Among the exhibits is a picturesque sketch by Valentin Serov depicting the ballerina Anna Pavlova in «La Sylphide». It is linked to the history of the famous poster for the first «Russian Seasons». As noted by «Fontanka», experts had long been aware of the existence of another similar work, while the sketch presented at the exhibition was discovered in a private collection and its authenticity was confirmed in 1997.
The exhibition also includes portraits, landscapes, theatrical sketches, and travel drawings. The works of the artists themselves are complemented by pieces from their teachers and masters who influenced their creativity, including Ilya Repin, Vasily Polenov, Alexei Savrasov, and Mikhail Vrubel.
Particular attention has been paid to the design of the exhibition. Decorative elements and frames become part of the artistic concept, helping to convey the atmosphere of the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. As a result, the story of the two friends is revealed not only through their works but also through the visual medium of the era.
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