Kaniv entered the life of Alexander Babak as an integral part of the academic curriculum. It was here that the students of the Kyiv State Art Institute, founded in the 1930s by its then rector Fedor Krychevsky, held their summer practice. The assistant of the latter, later famous Ukrainian artist Sergey Grigoriev recalls the exceptional role of this practice, because it took place in a picturesque corner consecrated by Chernecy Mountain, and their teachers worked alongside the students. 36 years later Alexander, having come to Kanev by invitation Yuri Stashkov, secured a wasteland on the site of the former institutional base. The author's text, filled with exciting memories, helps to understand not only the creative achievements of September last year, but also the main direction of his search today. Dniprovska Street. It is not known how this small and isolated formation came about. Of the five homesteads, one that lives a full-fledged rural life has remained until now. And in general, it seems that now this place exists rather in the memories of former residents than on the map. And more precisely, in the paintings of Alexander Babak.