Curatorial Narrative The Neoclassical revival of the 1840s had finally reached its zenith with Fedor Grigoryevich Solntsev’s Konskie nakolenniki II, executed between 1849 and 1853. In this period, artists sought to reconcile the grandeur of antiquity with the modernity of their own era, often resulting in works that oscillated between elegance and bombast. Solntsev’s treatment of his subject matter is exemplary of this trend, as he marshals a restrained yet ornate vocabulary to convey a sense of stately dignity.Upon enlargement to 44×62, the spatial rhythm of Konskie nakolenniki II becomes increasingly pronounced, with each component contributing to an overall atmosphere that can only be described as one of sumptuous repose. The gold and turquoise palette, while initially jarring in its chromatic structure, proves itself to be a masterful deployment of atmospheric weight when examined at larger scale. As the viewer’s gaze is drawn i