In the works of Arkady Plastov, with the naked eye, a genuine love for rural life, the peasantry is visible – many of his works are devoted to this topic. One of his most famous paintings on this topic is “First Snow”. On it, the artist depicted a simple plot from village life – the scenery is a hut, a front garden in front of it, a birch. But the main thing in the picture is snowfall. On the porch of an old village hut there are two children – apparently, a brother and a sister, and are fascinatedly looking at the snow falling from the sky. Millions of dancing snowflakes cover the ground, trees and buildings with a soft white carpet. This spectacle amazes and fascinates them – it is clear that they have been waiting for this event for a very long time. The faces of the children were frozen with smiles – pure, sincere, which can only be found in people who are able to find beauty in simple everyday things.

Apparently, the children, seeing the falling snow outside the window, were going to the street in a hurry, the girl threw only a woolen scarf over her dress, but she dressed her younger brother warmer: he was wearing a coat and a hat. The children’s feet are shod in felt boots – the usual village winter shoes.

The color scheme chosen by the artist for this work creates some uniformity, the painting is dominated by white, gray and brown colors. Despite this, the viewer does not get bored with the canvas. The enthusiastic looks of the children echo the pure fresh snow. The snowflakes gently touch their faces, which glow with warmth and joy.

Year of painting: 1946.

Painting dimensions: 146 x 113 cm.

Material: canvas.

Writing technique: oil.

Genre: genre painting.

Style: socialist realism.

Gallery: Tver Regional Picture Gallery, Tver, Russia.