the Polenov improved the living conditions of the surroundings ’populations. Struck by the pitiful state of schools and the difficult living conditions of the teachers, with his wife they built two schools and organized cultural trips to Moscow for the instructors. To meet the needs of the peasants, they also build a church of which Polenov is the architect. Children from surrounding villages are regularly invited to theatrical performances at the estate, "Old Borok". In 1918, after the Revolution, the house-museum became the first national museum and was renamed Polenovo after the death of the artist, in 1927. Polenov's great-granddaughter Natalia Polenova has been a director of Polenovo since 2011. See also Asteroid 4940 Polenov, named after Vasily Polenov List of Orientalist artists Orientalism External links 1844 births 1927 deaths Painters from Saint Petersburg People from Sankt-Peterburgsky Uyezd 19th-century painters from the Russian Empire Russian male painters 20th-century Russian painters Russian realist painters Orientalist painters Peredvizhniki Russian landscape painters People's Artists of the USSR (visual arts) Imperial Academy of Arts alumni Full Members of the Imperial Academy of Arts 19th-century male artists from the Russian Empire 20th-century Russian male artists Academic staff of the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture