Alexei Savrasov
1830–1897
Alexei Savrasov belonged to a generation that established the ordinary rural landscape as a major subject in Russian painting. He taught landscape at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture, where Isaac Levitan was among his pupils. His teaching valued observation of nature and the particular conditions of weather and light.
The Rooks Have Returned appeared at the first Wanderers’ exhibition in 1871. Savrasov combined seasonal signs with village buildings, roads and traces of daily life. His paintings show how close description of a place could acquire emotional significance without elaborate narratives or prominent human figures.
