Russian Art
Ge, N. N.
"Lev Nicholaevich Tolstoy". 1884
Notes: Portrait of Lev Nicholaevich Tolstoy (1828-1910)
Autograph Copy of the Portrait Located in the State Tretyakov Gallery Painted the Same Year
In the 1880s Nikolai Ge experienced a rebirth of inspiration and felt a renewed desire to work, possibly because of his close friendship with Leo Tolstoy. Ge was truly impressed by Tolstoy's passionate advocacy of his beliefs. Their close friendship is evident in the painter's "Portrait of Lev Nicholaevich Tolstoy" (1884) in which he has pictured the great writer in deep concentration.
