Repin's painting " Sailed»: what does this phrase mean and why would it surprise an artist

The catch phrase "Repin's painting "Sailed "" means a hopeless, but not a critical situation. We have been sure since childhood that it is related to the work of the great Russian painter Ilya Yefimovich Repin, but the artist himself would be surprised to hear about this work of his. Where is the error in the popular expression and where did it even come from in our speech?

The painting, which many generations of our compatriots attribute to the brush of Repin, actually exists. But its author is a remarkable, though less well — known Russian artist, icon painter and teacher Lev Grigoryevich Solovyov (1839-1919). The correct name of this canvas is " Monks. We went to the wrong place."

Lev Grigoryevich Solovyov

The painting was painted in 1879 and is now on display at the Art Museum named after him. Nikanor Onatsky, in Sumy, Ukraine. In the museum, the work of a contemporary of Repin was in 1938, and up to this point, the place of its stay can not be traced.

"We did not wait", by Ilya Repin 1884-1887.

Experts tend to believe that once the" Monks " of Solovyov were exhibited in the gallery next to the works of Repin, and since the style of these two artists is very similar, it was attributed to Ilya Yefimovich. As for the name "Sailed", it "stuck" to the picture by analogy with the aphoristic Repinsky "Did not wait".

But what does it matter now, because it is unlikely to eradicate the error that is ingrained in our memory. It doesn't matter, because it doesn't make the picture any less interesting or funny.

The outskirts of the village, a small fog, a river. Near the shore, a small boat with three monks, who were washed up to the shore, where the village women are bathing. Most likely, the monks became hostages of the forces of nature and chance — their boat was carried away by the current and when the fog parted, they found themselves right in the "women's society".

The trio of monks are not at all taken aback by the sudden diabolical temptation, but, on the contrary, they stare at the bathers with all their eyes. Some of the women are still dressed, some have already taken off some of their clothes, and some are completely naked and splashing in the water. The young monk standing in the bow of the boat looks at the beauties with surprise and delight, the one sitting in the stern looks as if stealthily, and the elderly holy father standing in the center looks with a blissful smile, like a cat at sour cream.

Nikanor Onatsky Art Museum in Sumy, where you can see the famous painting

Finally, I want to tell you a little about Lev Grigoryevich Solovyov — a self-taught Voronezh artist who was undeservedly forgotten by his descendants. He was a modest and very hardworking man who painted genre paintings, landscapes and ... icons.

"Shoemakers". The State Tretyakov Gallery. Moscow

Unfortunately, the creative legacy of Solovyov was mostly lost. Today we can only see the legendary painting with monks in Sumy, the genre painting "Shoemakers" in the Tretyakov Gallery, several sketches in the Russian Museum and two paintings in the museum of the city of Ostrogozhsk, in the artist's homeland.