Studies of Ukrainian Peasants

In May 1880, Repin went with his friend, the painter Valentin Serov, to the Ukraine to gather material for his famous masterpiece 'Zaporozhkye Cossacks writing a mocking Letter to the Turkish Sultan'. For three months he visited local historical museums and the countryside, where he painted many studies depicting local people. For similar oil sketches on canvas see I. Brodskii and V. Moskvinov, 'News about Repin' (Moscow, 1968) illustrated between pp.56-57.