Rating and value of Russian paintings by Constantin Westchiloff

If you own a work by or based on the artist Constantin Westchiloff and would like to know its value, our state-approved experts and auctioneers can help you.

Our specialists will carry out a free appraisal of your work, and provide you with a precise estimate of its current market value.

Then, if you want to sell your work, we'll point you in the right direction to get the best possible price for it.

Artist's rating and value

Constantin Westchiloff's work is uncommon and quite highly rated on the auction market. His works are of interest to collectors and art lovers, particularly those who appreciate 20th-century Russian painting.

The price at which his works sell on the art market ranges from €430 to €75,900, a considerable delta but one that speaks volumes about the value that can be attributed to the artist's work.

Thus, a painting by Westchiloff can fetch thousands of euros at auction, like his study drawing Afternoon sun, Crimea, which sold for €75,900 in 2011, whereas it was estimated at between €58,000 and €82,000.   

Order of value from the most basic to the most prestigious

Constantin Westchiloff's style and technique   

Constantin Westchiloff is a Russian painter who is fully in line with Russian Impressionism, and who during his career belonged to the Naturalist group, rejecting movements such as Suprematism and Constructivism. He maintained a fairly traditional working method.

Yet his master, none other than Élie Répine, had rejected academic conventions at the end of the 19th century and founded the Ambulants group, bringing together painters opposed to the pictorial norms common in Russia.

Westchiloff is thus part of the history of Russian painting in the midst of upheaval.

Constantin Westchiloff: his life, his work

Constantin Alexsandrovitch Wetschiloff (1878 - 1945) was an American-Russian Impressionist painter.

Born in St. Petersburg, he studied at the Imperial Academy in the same city in the studio ofÉlie Répine. In his youth, he lived through all the revolutionary events leading up to Russia's implosion in 1917.

After the Revolution, he chose to support Soviet propaganda, which enabled him to exhibit paintings at the "First Free National Exhibition" in Petrograd in 1919. Described as an Impressionist, his paintings were initially inspired by naturalism, aiming to depict nature as it is, without artifice.

He chose to pursue his career in Italy, where he produced a number of landscape paintings. In 1935, he decided to settle permanently in the United States, where he continued to paint landscapes as well as marine paintings, like his colleague Ivan Aïvazovsky.

Focus on a marine painting by Westchiloff

Constantin Westchiloff, usually known for his powerful seascapes, reveals here a turbulent sea scene under a heavy sky. The artist highlights the indomitable force of nature, with waves crashing violently against the rocks at dusk.

We see a tumultuous expanse of water, illuminated by silver flashes reflected on the crests of the waves. White foam stands out against the dark surface of the water, creating a striking contrast with the sky, tinged with shades of blue and violet. On the horizon, orange lights appear, perhaps fires, suggesting a human presence at the edge of this wilderness.

Here, the painter captures a moment of tension between the immensity of the sea and the fragile presence of man. The waves, rendered with meticulous realism, seem ready to engulf everything in their path. The stormy sky, with its menacing clouds, adds to this impression of hostility and mystery.

Everything, from the flickering light to the force of the wind, seems to underline the power of nature and man's powerlessness against it.

Details are carefully crafted, especially in the reflections of light on the water, which capture the way the dying sun tries to break through the thick clouds.

Cool hues dominate the composition, but the warm touches of the fires in the distance subtly draw the eye, reminding us that despite the force of nature, human life persists.

With this work, Westchiloff demonstrates not only his ability to depict the grandeur of the sea, but also to convey a certain poetry in this confrontation between man and the elements. The soft but fleeting light that illuminates the scene creates a balance between beauty and menace, inviting the viewer to contemplate both the serenity and brutality of the ocean.

The contrast between the agitation of the waves and the calm glow on the horizon creates a fascinating dynamic, in which the artist demonstrates his mastery of both the representation of natural forces and the subtle play of light. Here, Westchiloff excels in the art of capturing an ephemeral moment, between calm and storm, where every detail contributes to creating an immersive scene, full of movement and emotion.

In this way, the artist offers us a painting in which nature becomes both character and backdrop, and in which emotion is born from the contemplation of a sea that is both magnificent and threatening.

The context of Westchiloff's artistic creation

Russian Impressionists, like their Western counterparts, captured fleeting moments and subtle variations in light, but their work was set in a very specific context: that of a Russia in the midst of upheaval.

At the dawn of the 20th century, while Western Europe was enthusiastic about the aesthetic innovations of Impressionism, Russian artists such as Isaac Levitan, Konstantin Korovin or Valentin Serovseized on this style to express both the beauty and fragility of their native land.

In the midst of revolutionary turmoil, their works take on an added dimension. The peaceful landscapes, bathed in soft light, seem almost out of sync with the political and social turmoil shaking the country.

Yet this dissonance between the serenity of the scenes depicted and the violence of the surrounding events is profoundly significant. The Russian Impressionists sought to preserve the beauty of a vanishing world in their canvases.

Nature, which they paint with such delicacy, becomes a refuge from the storms of history. Their luminous palette and light brushstrokes create a striking contrast with the darkness of the coming revolution.

The revolutions of 1905 and 1917 marked a turning point, and for many artists, Impressionism became a swan song, a final attempt to capture peace before the eruption of chaos.

In this context, the art of the Russian Impressionists resonates as both an aesthetic and emotional testimony to a changing era, where the ephemeral beauty of landscapes reflects the precariousness of a society on the verge of collapse.

Focus on a Russian landscape painting by Westchiloff

Here, Constantin Westchiloff takes us into a peaceful winter landscape, typical of the vast Russian countryside. The painting exudes calm and tranquillity, with its bare trees and stream meandering gently through the snow.

The colors are soft, almost muted, dominated by cool tones of white, gray and blue, evoking the tranquility of a winter's day.

The trees, with their bare branches, stand out against the heavy gray sky. Their reflections in the dark water add a touch of movement to a setting frozen by the cold.

The stream, though small, catches the eye with its shimmering surface contrasting with the immaculate whiteness of the snow. It becomes a central element of the painting, creating a sense of depth and continuity in this seemingly silent landscape.

The general atmosphere is one of serenity, almost solitude. You can imagine the biting cold, the silence interrupted only by the discreet rustle of the water. The total absence of human presence accentuates this impression of absolute calm, as if nature, in all its simplicity, were self-sufficient.

The light is subtle, diffused through an overcast sky, but it illuminates just enough to bring out the details of the trees and stream. This play of light, typical of winter, adds an almost dreamlike touch to the scene, making it both realistic and poetic.

With this work, Westchiloff captures the essence of the Russian winter, not in its violence or austerity, but in its silent, still beauty.

The overall effect is soothing, from the soft colors to the calm of the landscape. The viewer is invited to lose himself in this sleeping nature, to take a break from the hustle and bustle of the outside world.

Constantin Westchiloff's imprint on his period

Ilya Repine is a world-famous painter, both in his lifetime and today. His paintings of landscapes and other compositions are highly sought-after by collectors and successful at auction, as are his preparatory drawings. Some of his works are exhibited in museums in France, but private collectors play a major role in preserving his work.  

His signature

Not all of Wetschiloff's works are signed. It is also possible that the work is a copy or that the inscription has faded over time, which is why expert appraisal is essential.

Appraising your property

If you own a work by Constantin Westchiloff, feel free to request a free appraisal by filling in our online form.

A member of our team of experts and certified auctioneers will contact you to provide an estimate of the market value of your work.

If you are considering selling your work, our specialists will also guide you through the various alternatives available to obtain the best possible price, taking into account market trends and the specific features of each work.