Possible themes: The synthesis of tradition and modernity in his work, his role in religious art during a time of Western influence in Russia. How his works reflect the Orthodox tradition while incorporating European realism.
Check for any recent scholarship or updated information. Assuming there isn't much, as he's from the late 19th-early 20th century, but still, avoid outdated information. aleksei valerevich kovalskii updated
His monumental The Last Judgment (1885), completed as part of a Russian Orthodox mission in Istanbul, reimagined the apocalyptic genre through Russian eyes. While Ghirlandaio’s frescoes influenced the composition, Kovalskii injected the scene with the somber realism of Repin, rendering souls in vivid, human struggle—each face a mosaic of individual sin and hope. Possible themes: The synthesis of tradition and modernity