Light and Shadow on the Snowfield. The Stone as Witness

This plein air study was painted on a hot summer day on the slopes of Mount Cheget, at an altitude of 2750 meters. I took the first section of the cable car, then walked about twenty minutes in search of a spot to paint. And there it was — a single stone resting in the middle of a melting snowfield.
A massive shadow from the mountain slope cut across the snow, passing directly through the stone and dividing the space into two worlds — light and darkness, clarity and silence. That moment captured me. It was about contrast, geometry, presence.
I worked quickly and instinctively. What came out is a bold, expressive study — one I still feel strongly about. Sometimes I look at it and want to repaint everything. Other times, I love it completely. But my artist friends say the same thing: “Don’t touch it. It’s strong. It’s honest.”
And I agree. The stone was there — motionless, solid — while everything around it kept changing. This painting holds that memory.
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Product Details
• Title: Light and Shadow on the Snowfield. The Stone as Witness
• Original oil painting
• Size: 35 45 cm
• Canvas board (not stretched)
• Year of creation: 2025
• Unframed
• Signed on the front and back
• Certificate of authenticity included
• Ready to be framed
• Painting style: Contemporary realism with elements of expressive landscape
• Painted from life during a plein air session in the Caucasus Mountains
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Let this work become an anchor — a reminder that even the simplest forms can carry strength.
The light moved, the shadow shifted, but the stone remained. Just like truth — it doesn’t need decoration.
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