On July 4, 2025, the exhibition “Her Heart Remained in Russia” opened in Yasnaya Polyana. The display in the Volkonsky House, dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the emigration of two Tatyanas—Tolstoy’s eldest daughter and granddaughter—combines materials from two museums: the State L. N. Tolstoy Museum in Moscow and the Yasnaya Polyana Museum.
Tatyana Tolstaya (1864–1950) was born in Yasnaya Polyana during the happiest time in her parents’ life—while Tolstoy was writing War and Peace. Tatyana Tolstaya (later Sukhotina-Tolstaya) was a gifted artist, a talented and vibrant individual, closely aligned with her father in spirit and deeply sympathetic to his views. The exhibition, according to its creators, traces the entire life of Tayana Tolstaya.
She showed artistic talent early—by the age of nine. She recalled that her desire to draw was sparked by a visit from Ivan Kramskoi, who painted the first portrait of her father. At her father's insistence, she studied at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture. Her mentors included Ilya Repin, Nikolai Ghe, Vasily Perov, Nikolai Kasatkin, Illarion Pryanishnikov, and others.
Tatyana, like many members of the Russian nobility, emigrated after the October Revolution. In 1925, on Anatoly Lunacharsky’s initiative, she was sent abroad to lecture about Tolstoy. Neither she nor her daughter expected it to be permanent.
“...I am wholeheartedly against turning Tanya into an emigrant. The situation is very difficult, and before the trip and now, I consider it my duty to live in Russia, not to tear Tanya away from it,”
— Tatyana Lvovna Sukhotina-Tolstaya, in a letter to her brother Sergey
Abroad, she traveled widely, sharing stories about her father and his legacy. In 1929, she opened an art studio in Montparnasse, Paris, where emigre painters such as Konstantin Korovin, Ivan Bilibin, Mstislav Dobuzhinsky, Boris Grigoriev, and others taught.
The exhibition presents, for the first time on such a scale, Tatyana’s correspondence with prominent figures of the Russian emigration: Fyodor Chaliapin, Ivan Bunin, Marina Tsvetaeva, and others. Visitors will also see letters from Tolstoy museum staff addressed to her daughter, Tatyana Sukhotina-Albertini. Also included are two open letters from the Yasnaya Polyana archive: one from Tatyana to her father, and another to her mother.
The exhibition also features Tatyana's paintings and drawings: sketchbooks, self-portraits, and a portrait of her father. A special place is given to portraits of Tatyana by Ilya Repin, Nikolai Kasatkin, and others. The literary legacy of Tatyana Sukhotina-Tolstaya is represented by her rare book Maria Montessori and New Education (1914), inscribed:
“To dear Mama. Not for reading, but out of respect. From the author.” — Tatyana
The project is supported by the L. N. Tolstoy Heritage International Foundation and the Russian Emigration Heritage Foundation.
Tatyana Tolstaya (1864–1950) was born in Yasnaya Polyana during the happiest time in her parents’ life—while Tolstoy was writing War and Peace. Tatyana Tolstaya (later Sukhotina-Tolstaya) was a gifted artist, a talented and vibrant individual, closely aligned with her father in spirit and deeply sympathetic to his views. The exhibition, according to its creators, traces the entire life of Tayana Tolstaya.
She showed artistic talent early—by the age of nine. She recalled that her desire to draw was sparked by a visit from Ivan Kramskoi, who painted the first portrait of her father. At her father's insistence, she studied at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture. Her mentors included Ilya Repin, Nikolai Ghe, Vasily Perov, Nikolai Kasatkin, Illarion Pryanishnikov, and others.
Tatyana, like many members of the Russian nobility, emigrated after the October Revolution. In 1925, on Anatoly Lunacharsky’s initiative, she was sent abroad to lecture about Tolstoy. Neither she nor her daughter expected it to be permanent.
“...I am wholeheartedly against turning Tanya into an emigrant. The situation is very difficult, and before the trip and now, I consider it my duty to live in Russia, not to tear Tanya away from it,”
— Tatyana Lvovna Sukhotina-Tolstaya, in a letter to her brother Sergey
Abroad, she traveled widely, sharing stories about her father and his legacy. In 1929, she opened an art studio in Montparnasse, Paris, where emigre painters such as Konstantin Korovin, Ivan Bilibin, Mstislav Dobuzhinsky, Boris Grigoriev, and others taught.
The exhibition presents, for the first time on such a scale, Tatyana’s correspondence with prominent figures of the Russian emigration: Fyodor Chaliapin, Ivan Bunin, Marina Tsvetaeva, and others. Visitors will also see letters from Tolstoy museum staff addressed to her daughter, Tatyana Sukhotina-Albertini. Also included are two open letters from the Yasnaya Polyana archive: one from Tatyana to her father, and another to her mother.
The exhibition also features Tatyana's paintings and drawings: sketchbooks, self-portraits, and a portrait of her father. A special place is given to portraits of Tatyana by Ilya Repin, Nikolai Kasatkin, and others. The literary legacy of Tatyana Sukhotina-Tolstaya is represented by her rare book Maria Montessori and New Education (1914), inscribed:
“To dear Mama. Not for reading, but out of respect. From the author.” — Tatyana
The project is supported by the L. N. Tolstoy Heritage International Foundation and the Russian Emigration Heritage Foundation.