The article examines the creativity of E.I.Gudin, People's Artist of Russia, a representative of the "austere style" in the Ural region art of the Soviet period. The still-life paintings of E.I.Gudin display not only originality, plastic expressiveness, and allegorical meanings of the era of the "austere style", but also the artist's personal views and his understanding and comprehension of the surrounding world. The artist's works are to be taken as an integral part of his life, his destiny and travels; all of them are autobiographical and carry deep symbolic content.