Bidspirit auction | Mikhail Petrovich Vakurov (1890–1942)

Mikhail Petrovich Vakurov (1890–1942) - “Gathering Mushrooms”. Russia, Palekh, 1933. Paper, graphite pencil. 17 × 9 cm. Condition Report: Condition is consistent with age. The sheet shows significant signs of handling and time, including tears and losses along the edges, creases, abrasions, surface dirt, folds, and paper deformations. Localized losses to the paper support are visible. Despite these condition issues, the drawing remains visually clear, and the composition and original linework are well preserved. Provenance: From the family collection of the Golikov dynasty. Preserved within the archive of Nikolai Ivanovich Golikov as an early Palekh work. This rare early drawing by Mikhail Petrovich Vakurov belongs to the formative period of Soviet Palekh art and represents an important example of the artist’s intimate graphic work. The composition depicts a lyrical rural scene of villagers gathering mushrooms within a wooded landscape. At the center stands a female figure holding a basket, around whom the quiet narrative unfolds. In the distance, architectural elements of a Russian church and village landscape appear, reinforcing the poetic atmosphere of an idealized national setting. The work possesses notable intimacy and lyricism. Unlike the more ceremonial fairy-tale and epic compositions often associated with Palekh artists, this drawing focuses on everyday rural life while preserving the decorative stylization and rhythmic clarity characteristic of the Palekh tradition. Its early date (13 January 1933) gives the work particular historical importance. This was a crucial period in the development of Palekh art during the first decades following the transformation of icon-painting traditions into lacquer miniature painting and graphic art. Collecting & Investment Potential Graphic works by Mikhail Vakurov are considerably rarer than finished Palekh lacquer miniatures and are highly desirable among collectors of twentieth-century decorative and Russian graphic art. “Gathering Mushrooms” possesses strong historical, scholarly, and collecting potential as an authentic early drawing by one of the important artists associated with the origins of twentieth-century Palekh painting.