Apparently, this painting of Stanislav Zhukovsky was inspired by memories of his distant childhood. The son of a Russian aristocrat who had lost his family estate, the artist often addressed the theme of the ancestral estates of the nobility, with their spacious rooms, elegant decor, and parks. “I'm a great fan of antiquities, and, in particular, of Pushkin’s epoch …” – Zhukovsky used to say about himself. And this interior is a return to the past, too. The room is filled with life, light and air - every object, whether vase, chair or portrait, seems to convey an emotion of its own. And what an idyllic vista opens up outside the window! However, Stanislav Zhukovsky would pay a bitter price for his passion for the old. He was a popular artist and a participant in the best exhibitions, but after the Revolution, all of a sudden, he became an “enemy of the Proletariat.” The press called this poet of the past noble era “a living corpse.” His art was compared to a “street fairy, or a faded beauty with rouge on her cheeks and bright lips.” No surprise then, that the artist decided to leave for Poland, his historical homeland.