We have already written quite a bit about Nikolai Alexandrovich. It would seem that what new and unknown details could the biography of this great man—a native of Kharkiv who has been shamefully forgotten in his homeland—still hold?

However, the painstaking work on the documents—which had already become routine—brought a pleasant surprise.

Issue No. 41 of the magazine *Ogonek* from 1910 featured a short article with a photograph that contained a number of very interesting facts.

The artist N.A. Sergeev is painting the work “A Small River” in his studio.

The painting is the property of the Officers’ Association of the First Railway Regiment.
On the left, on an easel, is a display case containing the originals of open letters published by the “Red Cross.” The photograph was
taken at that time for the magazine *Ogonyok* by the artist’s son, Second Lieutenant E. N. Sergeev of the 1st Railway Regiment.

In addition to a unique photo of the great Kharkiv native at work, images of open letters (postcards) created by Nikolai Alexandrovich were also posted. Incidentally, the originals of these six postcards—presumably due to their exclusivity—were immediately purchased by the magazine’s editorial staff.

The first artistic postcards (which were then called “open letters”) appeared in the Russian Empire in 1898.

A distinctive feature of these postcards was that they did not feature reproductions of paintings.

The artist, whenever he set out to work, created individual, complete, and independent works.

As a result, many of the most talented and renowned painters of that era went on to create a whole series of artistic open letters.

The article published by *Ogonyok* magazine is, as of now, the ONLY mention of the fact that our great fellow countryman, Nikolai Alexandrovich Sergeev, was not only a painter but also the creator of the most beautiful art postcards.

Postcards, of which there was more than one series, judging by the material found.

As for which Kharkiv residents wrote other open letters—you’ll find out in the coming days. So, stay tuned…

P.S.
For those who haven’t seen the album of Nikolai Sergeev’s paintings, we highly recommend checking it out.