Portrait of Sergey Solomko

Sergey Solomko Paintings: The 100 Most Famous, Through a Gallery's Eye

Updated November 2026 · ranked by our popularity score (searches, visits and orders for each work) · 119 works by Sergey Solomko in our catalogue

In short

To the gallery's eye, Sergey Solomko's most famous painting is Memory (1910). Sketch of the poster. Pillory. (1916) and Priestess (1915) complete the trio every eye recognises. Of the 119 works by Sergey Solomko in our catalog, the gallery presents the 100 most famous below, each original with its year, its museum and what makes it unique.

1867 – 1928, Saint Petersburg Art nouveau

The gallery's top 10 Sergey Solomko paintings

1
Memory (1910) by Sergey Solomko

Memory

1910 · Watercolor

The scene unfolds within the work titled Memory, a creation by the artist Sergey Solomko. This piece emerges from 1910, a moment when the artist's hand captures a sense of ethereal presence. The image holds a quiet weight, as if a single breath has been suspended in time. It invites a sense of wonder regarding the figures that inhabit its soft, dreamlike space.

2
Sketch of the poster. Pillory. (1916) by Sergey Solomko

Sketch of the poster. Pillory.

1916 · Ink On Paper

In this piece, titled Sketch of the poster. Pillory., we encounter a work of significant historical weight. Created by Sergey Solomko in 1916, the artwork functions as a black and white political cartoon. It is a stark departure from the more decorative or historical subjects often associated with the artist's broader oeuvre, focusing instead on the immediate, visceral realities of the era.

3
Priestess (1915) by Sergey Solomko

Priestess

1915 · Watercolor

In the artwork Priestess, created by Sergey Solomko around 1915, a nude female figure occupies the center of the composition. She stands amidst a scene of swirling clouds and architectural elements. The figure holds an open book aloft with both hands, positioning the object at the top of the vertical arrangement. This central action directs attention toward the book, which functions as a symbol of knowledge, wisdom, or enlightenment. The…

4
Glowworm by Sergey Solomko

Glowworm

In this quiet composition, a woman is suspended in a moment of deep contemplation. She is positioned centrally, her form occupying much of the frame as she gazes downward, lost in thought. The scene is defined by a soft, ethereal light that emanates from a glowing orb held in her hand, casting a gentle illumination across her face and hands. This light provides the only reprieve from the surrounding darkness,…

5
Find by Sergey Solomko

Find

The painting Find presents a contemplative scene featuring two figures set against a backdrop of natural elements, including branches and leaves. On the left, a seated female figure is dressed in elaborate attire characterized by intricate patterns in shades of red, yellow, and blue. She wears a headdress that appears to be adorned with feathers or plumes and holds an object resembling a book or a scroll. Her gaze is…

6
Blarney by Sergey Solomko

Blarney

The scene unfolds within the work titled Blarney, a piece that carries the original title Сладкие речи. This genre painting captures a specific, suspended moment of interaction between figures. Sergey Solomko, the artist behind this composition, brings a sense of narrative to the canvas through his distinct approach to storytelling.

7
Blue Bird (Bird Sirin) by Sergey Solomko

Blue Bird (Bird Sirin)

This work, titled Blue Bird (Bird Sirin), was created by Sergey Solomko. A Russian painter, watercolorist, illustrator, and designer, Solomko brought a specific sensibility to his depictions of myth and nature. His hand is evident in the delicate execution of this piece, which reflects the artistic training he received at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture and his later studies at the Imperial Academy of Arts.

Sergey Solomko paintings, ranked 11 to 100

11Couple in the boat by Sergey SolomkoCouple in the boat 12Virgo comforter by Sergey SolomkoVirgo comforter 13Portrait of italian young man by Sergey SolomkoPortrait of italian young man 14Letter to William Pope by Sergey SolomkoLetter to William Pope 15St. Jenevieve and the new Attila by Sergey SolomkoSt. Jenevieve and the new Attila 16Date by Sergey SolomkoDate 17Promise by Sergey SolomkoPromise 18Moscow in the XII century by Sergey SolomkoMoscow in the XII century 19Concubine by Sergey SolomkoConcubine 20Fantasy by Sergey SolomkoFantasy 21Human Shield by Sergey SolomkoHuman Shield 22For you, brave soldier by Sergey SolomkoFor you, brave soldier 23Pearl of Creation by Sergey SolomkoPearl of Creation 24Love of country shall give them the victory by Sergey SolomkoLove of country shall give them the victory 25Question by Sergey SolomkoQuestion 26Persian woman twisting a carpet by Sergey SolomkoPersian woman twisting a carpet 27Flirting Boyar by Sergey SolomkoFlirting Boyar 28Age of blessed memory of the 12th year by Sergey SolomkoAge of blessed memory of the 12th year 29Wedding ceremony. Middle Ages. (1909) by Sergey SolomkoWedding ceremony. Middle Ages.1909 30The Wreckage (1914) by Sergey SolomkoThe Wreckage1914 31The red blood of Garibaldi (1914) by Sergey SolomkoThe red blood of Garibaldi1914 32Vive la France! (1916) by Sergey SolomkoVive la France!1916 33The Nocturne Review (1914) by Sergey SolomkoThe Nocturne Review1914 34Escape (1915) by Sergey SolomkoEscape1915 35Thanks by Sergey SolomkoThanks 36Declaration of love by Sergey SolomkoDeclaration of love 37On the bridge by Sergey SolomkoOn the bridge 38Russian Types by Sergey SolomkoRussian Types 39Parting by Sergey SolomkoParting 40Dream of Icarus by Sergey SolomkoDream of Icarus 41Caught by Sergey SolomkoCaught 42In pursuit of by Sergey SolomkoIn pursuit of 43What have they done with my home. by Sergey SolomkoWhat have they done with my home. 44Venetian. Sketch. by Sergey SolomkoVenetian. Sketch. 45Defeated by Sergey SolomkoDefeated 46Small chicken become great cocks! by Sergey SolomkoSmall chicken become great cocks! 47Seducer by Sergey SolomkoSeducer 48Evening by Sergey SolomkoEvening 49Vasilisa Mikulishna by Sergey SolomkoVasilisa Mikulishna 50Two sketches of costumes by Sergey SolomkoTwo sketches of costumes 51Tenderness by Sergey SolomkoTenderness 52Ripe fruits by Sergey SolomkoRipe fruits 53Squash by Sergey SolomkoSquash 54Scribe by Sergey SolomkoScribe 55Tough response by Sergey SolomkoTough response 56Conversation by Sergey SolomkoConversation 57Who by Sergey SolomkoWho 58Fairy tale by Sergey SolomkoFairy tale 59Costume Designs by Sergey SolomkoCostume Designs 60Seducer by Sergey SolomkoSeducer 61Jokester by Sergey SolomkoJokester 62Bookplate of V. I. Klochkov by Sergey SolomkoBookplate of V. I. Klochkov 63Costume Designs by Sergey SolomkoCostume Designs 64Place de la Republic and of Happyness by Sergey SolomkoPlace de la Republic and of Happyness 65The enemy conseals himself! by Sergey SolomkoThe enemy conseals himself! 66Embrace by Sergey SolomkoEmbrace 67Byzantium by Sergey SolomkoByzantium 68At the fair by Sergey SolomkoAt the fair 69Vanity by Sergey SolomkoVanity 70Nastassja Korolevichna by Sergey SolomkoNastassja Korolevichna 71Forever together by Sergey SolomkoForever together 72A serious question by Sergey SolomkoA serious question 73The admired beauty by Sergey SolomkoThe admired beauty 74Banquet by Sergey SolomkoBanquet 75Costume Designs by Sergey SolomkoCostume Designs 76Maria Swan White by Sergey SolomkoMaria Swan White 77Proud by Sergey SolomkoProud 78Love talk by Sergey SolomkoLove talk 79Poland by Sergey SolomkoPoland 80Parisian by Sergey SolomkoParisian 81Evening Walk by Sergey SolomkoEvening Walk 82Red Cross by Sergey SolomkoRed Cross 83Joseph and Potiphar's wife by Sergey SolomkoJoseph and Potiphar's wife 84The Pursuit of Happyness by Sergey SolomkoThe Pursuit of Happyness 85Queen Azvyakovna by Sergey SolomkoQueen Azvyakovna 86Pledge of Love by Sergey SolomkoPledge of Love 87On the way to victory by Sergey SolomkoOn the way to victory 88Meeting by Sergey SolomkoMeeting 89By the fence by Sergey SolomkoBy the fence 90Design of male medieval costume by Sergey SolomkoDesign of male medieval costume 91Russian in the Netherlands at the time of Peter the Great by Sergey SolomkoRussian in the Netherlands at the time of Peter the Great 92Age of the Great Peter by Sergey SolomkoAge of the Great Peter 93Pledge of Love by Sergey SolomkoPledge of Love 94Lady with Peacock by Sergey SolomkoLady with Peacock 95Costume Designs by Sergey SolomkoCostume Designs 96To the light of science by Sergey SolomkoTo the light of science 97St. George, coming to the rescue by Sergey SolomkoSt. George, coming to the rescue 98Sketch of the costume by Sergey SolomkoSketch of the costume 99Age of Vladimir and Yaroslav by Sergey SolomkoAge of Vladimir and Yaroslav 100Awaiting Response by Sergey SolomkoAwaiting Response

Sergey Solomko's famous paintings, period by period

The subjects that held Sergey Solomko's eye

The four subjects that come back most often in these originals, each with its finest example.

Sergey Solomko, one signature painting per decade

Works per decade

Pick a decade to see the original that defines it.

Sergey Solomko's paintings: the gallery answers

Which Sergey Solomko painting is the most famous of all?Reveal the answer

Memory (1910). Sketch of the poster. Pillory. (1916) and Priestess (1915) come next.

How old was Sergey Solomko on completing Memory?Reveal the answer

43 years old: Memory dates from 1910, and Sergey Solomko was born in 1867.

Which are Sergey Solomko's top 10 paintings?Reveal the answer

Memory, Sketch of the poster. Pillory., Priestess, Glowworm, Find, Blarney, Blue Bird (Bird Sirin), Reading, Mermaid and faun and Temptation. The ranking above gives each one's year and museum.

How many works did Sergey Solomko create?Reveal the answer

Our catalog holds 119 works by Sergey Solomko, dated from 1895 to 1916.

When did Sergey Solomko create the most famous paintings?Reveal the answer

In 1910s: 8 of the 100 works on this page were made then, Memory among them.

Which are Sergey Solomko's earliest and latest famous works?Reveal the answer

On this page, the earliest is Reading (1895) and the latest Sketch of the poster. Pillory. (1916).

Which subjects did Sergey Solomko return to most?Reveal the answer

Couple (22), Books (12) and Women (12), across the 100 works on this page.

Which medium did Sergey Solomko work in most?Reveal the answer

Watercolor, for 2 of the 100 works on this page.

Which movement is Sergey Solomko associated with?Reveal the answer

Art nouveau, judging by the originals on this page.

Sergey Solomko: the artist

Sergey Solomko: Life and Legacy

Early Life and Education

  • Born: August 22, 1867, in Saint Petersburg, Russia.
  • Sergey Sergeyevich Solomko was the son of Colonel (later Major-General) Sergey Solomko, who served under Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich. He grew up within the Konstantinovsky Palace, providing early exposure to aristocratic life and culture.
  • Education: From 1883 to 1887, he attended the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture. He later audited classes at the Imperial Academy of Arts for a year.

Early Career as an Illustrator

  • Solomko began his career as a magazine illustrator around 1888, contributing to publications like Север (North), a weekly literary journal.
  • Key Publications: He quickly gained employment with Нива (Grainfield), Russia’s most popular magazine at the time. He also worked for Мир искусства (World of Art) and the satirical journal Шут (The Fool).
  • He illustrated works by prominent Russian authors such as Pushkin, Chekhov, and Lermontov.

Artistic Development and Diverse Projects

  • Illustrative Work: In 1901, Solomko illustrated a special edition of Gogol’s Dead Souls, published by Adolf Marks.
  • Design Versatility: After 1900, he expanded his design work to include theater posters and a popular series of postcards depicting Old Russia, published by Maison Lapine in Paris.
  • Imperial Commissions: He created models for the Imperial Porcelain Factory and collaborated with the House of Fabergé. In 1903, he designed elaborate historical costumes for the famous ball at the Winter Palace, some adorned with real jewelry.

Parisian Period and World War I

  • Move to Paris: In 1910, Solomko moved to Paris but continued to exhibit in Russia and contribute to Russian magazines.
  • War Work: During World War I, he painted portraits of officers from the Russian Expeditionary Force in France under commission by a government committee dedicated to collecting war trophies.

Post-Revolutionary Life and Exile

  • Political Shift: After the Russian Revolution, Solomko fell out of favor with the new Soviet government and became a self-imposed exile.
  • Continued Artistic Work: He created costumes for renowned dancers Mathilde Kschessinska and Anna Pavlova. He also illustrated books by French authors like Émile Gebhart, Ernest Renan, and Albert Samain.
  • Exile Activities: In 1921, he participated in an exhibition of exiled artists from the former Imperial Academy of Arts. Later, he helped establish the “Russian Art and Industry Institute.”

Death and Legacy

  • Final Years: Solomko died on February 2, 1928, while convalescing at the “Maison Russe,” a retirement home for White émigrés near Paris.
  • Historical Significance: During the Soviet period, his work was criticized as decadent and bourgeois. However, interest in Solomko’s art revived in the 1990s. His detailed and accurate depictions of Old Russian culture are highly valued today.
  • His legacy lies in his ability to capture a vanishing world with remarkable detail and artistry.