2024-03-29

Grigorv – “Goalkeeper”

As a friendly company, the schoolchildren came after school to play everyone’s favorite football. In the center of the canvas, Sergei Grigoriev shows us an ordinary boy who is currently the goalkeeper. From his posture and focused face, we understand that all his attention is riveted to the game. The young goalkeeper is not even worried about the recent “combat” wound on his knee, it is bandaged. The guys conditionally designated the gates with their own briefcases and knapsacks.

Loyal friends and comrades cheer on the players nearby, sitting on the logs. Also, next to the children, we see an adult man in a suit and hat. Perhaps this is their teacher, or maybe just a passer-by who is interested in the game. From his tense expression on his face and slightly shifted hat, it is clear that he is actively observing and worried about one of the teams. But the most restless spectator, even jumping up from his seat, began to watch the game right from the playing field. The artist shows us him in a red suit, behind the back of the goalkeeper. All the fans are excited, only the white dog lies calmly, curled up in a ball at the feet of the little girl.

The entire plot takes place somewhere on the outskirts of the city, in a vacant lot. But in the background we see the echoes of the war in the form of destroyed houses.

The artist conveys to us the spirit and mood of the post-war period. Despite the difficult times, both children and adults find a place for an outlet, joy or just playing football. By this, the artist once again wants to emphasize the triumph of life over death.

Year of painting: 1949.

Painting dimensions: no data.

Material: no data.

Writing technique: no data.

Genre: genre painting.

Style: socialist realism.

Gallery: State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia.

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