“Behest of the Sky” is an artwork created by Nicholas Roerich in 1915. It is crafted using cardboard and tempera and belongs to the Symbolism art movement. The artwork is categorized as a genre painting.
The artwork features a mesmerizing and expansive sky painted with a warm palette of oranges, yellows, and muted browns. The clouds are voluminous and seem almost tangible, with their undulating forms covering the majority of the canvas. Below the majestic sky, a group of figures is seen with arms raised, possibly in reverence or awe. They are dressed in traditional attire and are depicted with their backs towards the viewer, which adds a sense of mystery and solemnity to the scene. The landscape itself is rugged, with undulating terrains and distant mountains painted in darker hues, providing a stark contrast to the luminous sky above. The composition of the painting evokes a sense of grandeur and the sublime, characteristic of Roerich’s approach to Symbolism.
