PETR WILLIAMS (1902–1947) A Man in a Boat (Self-Portrait)

inscribed in Cyrillic and numbered ‘Chelovek v lodke N18’ [A Man in a Boat] and dated ‘1926’ (lower left) pencil on paper 35.6 × 21 cm executed in 1926 The present drawing is a preparatory sketch for the painting A Man in a Boat (oil on canvas, 169.5 × 121 cm., 1926; State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, inv. ЖС-846). The composition has traditionally been regarded as a self-portrait, as the figure bears a strong resemblance to known photographs of the artist. The work was created when Williams was twenty-four years old. As noted by the scholar A. Y. Sidorov, the painting may be interpreted as a playful and somewhat theatrical self-image, depicting the artist as a powerful heroic figure seated in a boat laden with the 'gifts of nature,' reflecting the influence of his teacher Ilya Mashkov.