The sculpture ‘A frolicsome girl’ – a touching and vivid image of childish joy, created by Matvei Chizhov – became one of the most recognisable exhibits of 19^th-century Russian art culture. The life and creative work of Matvei Chizhov is a story of great talent, who rose from serfdom to become an academician. His biography is a ready-made plot for a novel.

Matvei Chizhov was born in the village of Pudovo in the Vladimir Province and was a serf of Count Sheremetev. Having demonstrated an aptitude for woodcarving, he was sent to St. Petersburg to study first at arts and crafts school and then, by a stroke of luck and thanks to the recognition of his talent, at the Imperial Academy of Arts. His mentor was Nikolay Laveretsky, and later Chizhov worked as an assistant to Mark Antokolsky, participating in the creation of his monumental works (for example, he was a collaborator in the work on the monument to Catherine II in St. Petersburg).

In 1870, Matvei Chizhov received the Academy's Grand Gold Medal and the title of First Class Artist for his sculpture ‘Peasant in Distress.

 ‘A Frolicsome Girl’ is a sculpture of a barefooted girl with her arms spread wide, carefully crossing a stream over a log. Created in 1873, the work was executed in realistic manner characteristic of that period. Chizhov depicted peasant children with great warmth and sympathy, avoiding idealisation. In the sculpture ‘A Frolicsome Girl,’ he brilliantly succeeded in conveying facial expressions, emotions, and instantaneous movements.

The sculpture was a resounding success. It was cast in bronze and cast iron many times, in various sizes (from large museum pieces to small desk models). The casting iron pieces were mainly made at the famous Kasli plant of architectural and art casting. Thanks to this, ‘A Frolicsome Girl’ became one of the symbols of Kasli art casting and spread to museums and private collections throughout Russia.

The sculpture perfectly matched the spirit of the time – an interest in realism, in the lives of ordinary people, and in the national identity. It was moving away from mythological and allegorical themes towards real, everyday life.

The fate of the author, Matvei Chizhov, a serf who created a universally beloved image, makes this sculpture even more significant. It is a symbol of overcoming adversity and the triumph of talent.

One of the most famous and high-quality bronze casts of ‘A Frolicsome Girl’ is stored at the State Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow. It can also be seen in the State Russian Museum in St. Petersburg and in many other major museums in Russia (for example, in the Yekaterinburg Museum of Fine Arts, which features the best collection of Kasli plant castings).

The museum Collection exposition features the sculpture ‘A Frolicsome Girl,’ cast in St. Petersburg at the Felix Chopin bronze foundry in 1878.