Leon Schulman Gaspard (1882 - 1964) Memories of the Faraway

Siberian Sleighriders, 1921, oil on canvas on board, 47" x 40"

As a child, Gaspard traveled throughout the Russian countryside with his father, a rug and fur trader. The vast snowy landscapes and busy marketplaces of these childhood journeys inspired much of his later work, including Siberian Sleighriders (above). Gaspard completed the painting in 1921, a few years after settling permanently in Taos; that same year he traveled through Asia, and perhaps the Mongolian markets or Chinese caravans inspired nostalgic memories of his native Russia. The Siberian scene, a painted remembrance, is impressionistic and dreamlike; tiny sleighs disappearing into towering trees, colors echoing and blending, nature and humanity contrasting and merging.

Smolensk - Winter (The Bridge at Smolensk), 1914, oil on canvas and board, 24 1/8" x 30"

Passage de la Oka, 1915, oil on silk on board

As the cold settles in Santa Fe, it is a lovely time to appreciate these Russian travelers – their bright colored clothes in a blanket of snow, the tenacity of humanity, and the beauty of the faraway. Few painters capture these winter scenes as vividly as Gaspard, and we hope you will have a chance to stop by the gallery to see these incredible paintings. Stay warm!