A Meeting of Friends by Alexander Samokhvalov

On the 75th anniversary of Victory Day, the Russian Museum shows the work by Alexander Nikolaevich Samokhvalov "A meeting of friends" (1945). Despite the fact that the artist's heritage has been studied almost completely, this painting was a real discovery for researchers of his work.
The dramatic story of the work, now kept in a private collection, deserves attention. "A meeting of friends" painted in 1945 and presented at the All-Union Exhibition was a little-noticed by official critics. After that, its location remained unknown. But later it was discovered that it was in a boarding house in Kovrino, Vladimir Oblast, and was listed as the work of an unknown artist.
Thanks to the initiative of the new owners of this painting and the participation of restoration workshops of the St. Petersburg State Academic Institute of Fine Arts, Sculpture and Architecture, the painting was prepared for exposition. Large research work carried out by the specialists of the Russian Museum made it possible to identify the author of this work.

The exhibition for the first time will present the history of creation, restoration and attribution of the painting "A meeting of friends".