Vasily Dmitrievich Polenov (1844–1927) - Russian artist, master of historical, landscape and genre painting, teacher, representative of a highly intelligent noble family, participant in the Russian-Turkish War, author of scenery for theatrical productions, member of the Association of Traveling Art Exhibitions , a big music lover and the author of several musical works. An extremely charming person, connected by long-term friendships with prominent representatives of the artistic world of Russia at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries. This is how Vasily Polenov appears in the wonderful biography of Mark Kopshitzer, written in excellent literary language and masterfully combining the detail and thoroughness of a solid art historical study with the entertainment of a biographical novel.< /p>