Girl with Peaches

from the sources

• The painting depicts 11-year-old Vera Mamontova, a daughter of the entrepreneur and arts patron Savva Mamontov. en.wikipedia.org

  “The painting depicts 11-year-old Vera Mamontova, a daughter of Russian entrepreneur and patron of the arts Savva Mamontov.”

• The painting was made at Abramtsevo, an estate near Moscow. en.wikipedia.org

  “It was painted at Abramtsevo, an estate not far from Moscow.”

• Serov had known Vera Mamontova since she was a baby because he often visited the Mamontov estate at Abramtsevo. en.wikipedia.org

  “Valentin Serov knew Vera Mamontova from her babyhood, as he frequently visited Mamontov's Abramtsevo estate, and sometimes he even lived there for lengthy periods of time.”

• Serov said he worked on the painting for over a month and aimed to preserve a quality of freshness in it. en.wikipedia.org

  “I painted it for over a month and tortured her, poor child, to death, because I wanted to preserve the freshness in the finished painting, as you can see in old works by great masters.”

• The painting won first prize at the Exhibition of the Moscow Society of Lovers of Art in 1887. en.wikipedia.org

  “In 1887 the painting won first prize at the Exhibition of the Moscow Society of Lovers of Art.”

• Igor Grabar, Serov's friend and biographer, praised the painting as the masterpiece of Russian painting. en.wikipedia.org

  “Serov's friend and biographer, Russian art historian Igor Grabar, acclaimed it as "the masterpiece of Russian painting".”

• The painting's style resembles that of the French Impressionists, though Serov had not yet encountered their work when he painted it. en.wikipedia.org

  “has much in common with the French Impressionists, [Serov] did not become acquainted with their work until after he had painted [it]”