In 1910, Ivan Silych Goryushkin-Sorokopudovacquired an estate in the village of Ivanovka, located 40 kilometers from Penza. There he lived, entertained guests, and painted numerous portraits and landscapes. The Russian artist was also a passionate beekeeper, maintaining an apiary on his estate. The themes of Goryushkin-Sorokopudov’s paintings created in Ivanovka resonated with the poetry of Alexander Alexandrovich Blok and Sergei Alexandrovich Yesenin.

“Beloved land! My heart is dreaming // Of stacks of sun in the natal waters. // How I would like to lose myself // Amid your greenery of many voices.” The artist often recited these lines from a poem by Sergei Yesenin, written in 1914. For him, they represented not only a gem of poetry but also an expression of his own life credo.

Ivanovka attracted students who visited the artist and listened to his stories. Boris Vladimirovich Preobrazhensky, a student of Ivan Silych Goryushkin-Sorokopudov who studied at the Penza Art School from 1927 to 1932, wrote in his memoirs,

Ivan Silych Goryushkin-Sorokopudov’s painting “At the Apiary, ” created in the first quarter of the 20th century, features a tranquil scene on a green meadow where two beehives, one red and one blue, are positioned between two tree trunks. In the left foreground, a collection of garden objects is depicted, with a yellow beehive topped by a gray roof and surrounded by trees in the background. To the right, in the depth of the painting, two additional red beehives and yellow flowers are visible. Throughout all his landscapes, the artist emphasized the realistic foundations of art, reflecting his deep appreciation for the beauty and poetry found in simple, everyday settings.