Ilya Repin. Sketch of Taras Bulba for "The Cossacks Writing a Letter to the Turkish Sultan". 1878.

Ilya Repin. One of the early sketches from 1878 for the painting Cossacks Writing a Letter to the Turkish Sultan. It depicts one of the main characters in Taras Bulba, written from the journalist Vladimir Gilyarovsky. The heavy three-dimensional figure is boldly outlined in the drawing. Volumetric in color is given the head almost in profile. The gaze of kind and intelligent eyes is directed downward. The character is dressed in a characteristic Zaporozhets long mustache, earring, and scalp. The first drawings and sketches for the painting date back to 1878. Later the white recognizable hats were added to the character. Oil on canvas duplicated. The size of the canvas: 70x50,5 cm.