01 Work, The Art of War, Vassily Surikov's The conquest of Siberia by Yermak, with footnotes

Vassily Surikov

The conquest of Siberia by Yermak

Oil on canvas

599 × 285 cm

Russian Museum (Saint Petersburg)

Vasily Ivanovich Surikov had been working on this colossal painting for four years and even undertook long trips to the places relevant for the topic of the picture. The painting depicts the final battle of Yermak’s brigade with the vast hordes of enemies under the command of khan Kuchum in 1582. Surikov sees this battle as an act of people’s heroism and connects Yermak’s campaign as a part of national liberation struggle of the Russians against the conquerors. Surikov shows the culmination of the battle to add a more dramatic edge to this historical event. In the left one can see the avant-garde of the Cossacks that is given special compositions emphasis. The Cossacks form a powerful wedge-shaped group that literally cuts into the enemy’s ranks. Surikov underlines a strong connection between Yermak and his soldiers and depicts them in a single battle urge. Kuchum’s patchy army is pressed to the clayey river bank, and we can see panic growing among the soldiers. Surikov pays special attention to character development. In the diverse crowd one can distinguish Cossacks with sharply delineated faces and fiery eyes. The artist viewed these brave, composed, and confident people as an ideal historical type that Siberia has brought up in him. Repin wrote: “The impression from this picture is so unbelievably mighty…The viewers are just stunned, and their imagination is defied”. More on this painting


Vasily Ivanovich Surikov (24 January 1848 – 19 March 1916) was a Russian Realist history painter. Many of his works have become familiar to the general public through their use as illustrations.

He was born to an old Yenisei Cossack family descending from Don Cossacks that had settled in Siberia. His father was a Collegiate Registrar, a civil service rank that often served as postmasters. In 1854, as a result of his father being reassigned, the family moved to the village of Sukhobuzimskoye, where he began his primary education.

In 1859, his father died of tuberculosis so the family returned to Krasnoyarsk and were forced to rent the second floor of their house to survive financially. He began drawing while attending the district school and was encouraged by the local art teacher. His first formal work dates from 1862, but his family could not afford to continue his education, and he became a clerk in a government office. This brought him into contact with Pavel Zamyatin, the governor of Yenisei, who was able to find him a patron: Pyotr Kuznetsov, a local merchant who owned several small gold mines.

In 1868, he rode on horseback to Saint Petersburg but was unable to qualify for admission to the Imperial Academy of Arts, so he studied at the drawing school of the Imperial Society for the Encouragement of the Arts. After a year there, he was allowed to audit classes at the academy and became a full-time pupil toward the end of 1869.

From 1869 to 1875, he studied with Pavel Chistyakov, Bogdan Willewalde, and Pyotr Shamshin, winning several medals. His great attention to composition earned him the nickname "The Composer". In 1875, he graduated with the title of Artist, first degree. More on Vasily Ivanovich Surikov

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