The alignment of forces of the artistic life of Russia in the second half of the 19th century went into oblivion: on the one hand, the routine art of the Academy of Arts, on the other, the Wanderers. At the end of the 19th century, young artists began to look for their own paths in painting. At the same time, the Abramtsevsky circle was formed, which put forward new tasks that are not inherent in the Partnership program. And then - in the 1900s - for the first time in Russian artistic life, an abundance of various associations arose: they all performed with their own programs, manifestos, platforms. In this most difficult situation, two large art associations were formed at two poles - in Moscow and St. Petersburg: the World of Art and the Union of Russian Artists.