In the work of the People's Artist of the RSFSR E. I. Gudin, a representative of the "harsh style", the genre of landscape played a decisive role. The article examines the features of landscape painting by the Ural artist, explores the creative process of working on the painting and focuses special attention on the motif of the mountain in the landscape as a symbol through which the master reveals the understanding of the complexity of life phenomena, reflects the relationship of man with the earth.