Ilya Repin was one of the biggest Russian realist painters, tied to the Peredvizhniki group who pushed art toward real life instead of fancy myths. Your text says he joined the “itinerants” in 1878 and stayed loyal to realism even after seeing Impressionism in Paris. He painted common people, but also big names like Tolstoy, Mussorgsky and Tsar Nicholas II.
Born in 1844 in Chuguyev, he came from a military family and started painting icons as a teen. He struggled to enter the Imperial Academy at first, but kept trying and finally got in. His early success came with Barge Haulers on the Volga, which launched his career and made him known across Russia.
Repin spent years traveling through Europe, painting portraits, history scenes and huge crowd compositions. His works often touched on the Russian revolutionary spirit, which is why they’re seen as part of a “national style.” He also built a long friendship with Tolstoy, painting him many times in simple peasant clothes.
Later in life he settled in Finland at his home called the Penates. After the 1917 Revolution he refused to return to the Soviet Union, saying he was too old for the journey. He stayed in Finland until his death in 1930, and his house later became a museum.