1897–1898
Paper, gouache
105,8 х 106

The composition was conceived as a sketch for a decorative maiolica mural. Polenov creates a mysterious fairy-land atmosphere of a starlit night, which gives birth, as if from ornamental swathes of mist, to mythical creatures: Firebird. Its outline merges with the contour of a magical tree, blooming with fantastic flowers. The image of the wondrous bird seems incomplete, still only half-emerged from an enchanted state. The pale pink radiance emanating from it illuminates the space but fails to drive away the surrounding darkness. For symbolism, the fairy-land bird epitomizes inspiration, the yearning "for other worlds", the striving for supreme harmony and, at the same time, the dream of the "unrealised", the doom of wretched existence in the dim world of reality. The composition is dominated by smooth flowing line and abstracted colour patches. The colours seem to be half-effaced, dissolved in a misty haze separating the world of visions from the tangible world.