There’s probably something to be said about me when it comes to the reasons why I like “The Prisoner” by Yaroshenko. Maybe I’m a darker soul, a lonely one, or even just someone who contemplates life frequently, but this type of image really speaks to me.
It’s not that this painting is particularly complex, either. Yaroshenko painted it with fairly empty areas, whether those are in shadow, an empty stone wall, or just a lack of objects in the environment. Of course, that speaks to the title of the piece quite well, as prisoners wouldn’t be expected to have much.
The Prisoner,
Nikolai Alexandrovich Yaroshenko
Yet, the piece and the idea of being a prisoner could be interpreted differently than the title would first indicate. Sure, this barren, stone-walled environment could clearly be a prison cell. But the small window is made of glass blocks and not specifically bars, and there is some level of interpretation as to whether he’s really in an actual prison or one of his own contemplation. This could simply be the quiet spot that he’s chosen to look out from, looking for light without a view, somewhere to think for a bit.
He sits on the borderline of light and darkness, whether the situation is based in reality or the mind. It speaks to the me as a person who also tiptoes that line frequently, a balance that can often be hard to maintain. Yaroshenko didn’t seem to paint the man with any sense of foreboding, or even of peace. He really seems to be on that border, contemplating which side will win today.
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To me, that’s the real trick of Yaroshenko’s painting here, offering a simple view with many emotional complexities. It’s easier to paint the frustration or anger of being a prisoner, even the melancholy of the moment. But Yaroshenko instead gave the viewer a choice to drift towards the light or the dark, a moment to decide their own fate.
Some moments when I see this painting, I look to the comfort of remaining in the dark. The dark is often easier to manage, wallowing in the same situation every day. Every so often though, in the right moments, I look into the light, out the window towards hope.
See it larger here.
References
Nikolai Alexandrovich Yaroshenko
1878, Realism; oil, canvas
143.1 cm x 107.6 cm
- Tretyakov Gallery: https://www.tretyakovgallery.ru/en/collection/zaklyuchennyy/
- http://www.encyclopediaofukraine.com/display.asp?linkpath=pages%5CY%5CA%5CYaroshenkoMykola.htm
