The artwork titled “Human Ancestors,” created by Nicholas Roerich in 1940, is a genre painting within the Symbolist art movement. This piece, rendered using tempera on canvas, captures an evocative and symbolic tableau.
In the artwork, a vast and undulating landscape stretches across the canvas, characterized by rolling hills and flowing rivers that lead the eye into the distant horizon. The scene is dominated by rich, earthy tones of green, brown, and yellow, meticulously blended to illustrate the natural terrain. Amid this expansive backdrop sits a contemplative figure, possibly symbolizing a connection to the land or ancestral heritage. This lone individual, depicted with meticulous attention to clothing and posture, exudes a sense of solitary reflection or meditation. Surrounding the figure, dark shapes, which may represent animals or spirits, add an element of mysticism and depth to the composition. Through his use of tempera and detailed yet stylized forms, Roerich conveys a profound narrative about human origins and the enduring bond with nature.