"Just Friends, Obviously" (2026) Original Oil Painting by Nikifor Swiristuhin

I painted Just Friends, Obviously as a story about two people who have been in love with each other for so long that they almost started believing their own “just friends” explanation.
They meet on a street where even the houses seem to roll their windows in disbelief.
The man brought flowers purely as a friendly gesture — or at least that’s the story he carefully prepared in advance.
The woman looks at him the way people usually look at friends... if they secretly want to hold their hand for the rest of their lives.
The red rooftops are blushing even more than the couple and clearly know more than they are willing to admit.
A streetlamp stretches its neck to get a better view, chimneys whisper to one another, and the cobblestones are taking bets on who will confess first.
I deliberately made the town a little crazy, because common sense left this story a long time ago.
Everyone here understands what is happening except the two people at the center of it.
They stand so close together that only the word “friends” can fit between them — and even that is a tight squeeze.
To me, this painting is about a love so obvious that all it can do is laugh at its own disguise.

Materials used:

Oil painting

Details:

• Oil painting on Panel / Board / MDF
• One of a kind artwork
• Size: 30 x 40 x 0.3cm (unframed) / 30 x 40cm (actual image size)
• Ready to hang
• Signed on the front
• Style: Expressive and gestural
• Subject: Architecture and cityscapes