THE VOLGA TOWERS (detail), 1870-1873 (oil on canvas)

1870-1873//Oil on canvas From May to August 1870, Répine went on a trip to the Volga, with his brother Vassili and two painter friends. Fascinated by haulers, sturdy men who pull sailing boats along the river, he draws them tirelessly. The Grand Duke of Russia Vladimir Alexandrovich, vice-president of the Academy and son of Tsar Alexander II, then commissioned him to produce a large painting on this theme. In 1873, Répine presented the work to the Academy of Fine Arts. This painting earned him a medal of encouragement but also provoked violent debate. The power with which he stages this Russian people at work strikes the audience. The painter individualizes each figure, varies attitudes in order to give everyone their own existence. After this scandal success, Repin's reputation was established. The painting, sent in 1873 to the Universal Exhibition in Vienna, obtained a gold medal there. Saint Petersburg, Russian State Museum