We are Proud of the Motherland Image. Vologda’s Artists in Kirillov, Plein Air Painting 2011
The eternal teacher of a man is the nature, the church of his spiritual values. The landscape in all its diversity contains artistic and cultural, spiritual and moral energy.
The landscape has been the main painting genre of Vologda within many years of its development taking into account the number of created works. Almost all artists constantly paint landscapes. It is their favourite and popular genre where they continue the best traditions of the Russian realistic art inheriting the traditions of the Russian painting of the 19th – early 20th century.
Today’s creative activity of the Vologda’s landscape painters is developing on this world outlook basis.
As a rule, painters and graphic artists draw motives of their works from the native nature. These are mainly views of large cities and small historical towns of the Vologda region.
Nikolay Ivanovich Mishusta, Yuri Alexandrovich Voronov, Oleg Vasilievich Pakhomov, Viktor Innokentievich Sysoev, Anatoly Alexandrovich Borisov, Bronislav Anatolievich Kurago, Ivan Yegorovich Basanov participated in the open air painting event which took place in the Kirillo-Belozersky Historical, Architectural and Art Museum-Reserve during 10 days in late September. Their works formed the basis of the exhibition which was staged in the memorial workshop of A.V. Panteleev in Vologda. They presented a more serious report to the residents of Kirillov. The artists constantly return there. The muted beauty of the northern nature in combination with the ancient architectural monuments attracts and charms them and inspires new creative achievements.
Plein air painting trips have become traditional for the artists of Vologda. They discover new subjects and gain new impressions there. Joint outdoor painting events are useful for the artists regarding creative communication when the spirit of competitiveness and mutual support become especially apparent.
We hope that it was not the last arrival of the artists of our region to the Belozersk land because they please us with their unforgettable woks after every trip.
NIKOLAY IVANOVICH MISHUSTA
Graphic artist
Honoured Artist of the Russian Federation since 2005
Member of the Union of Russian Artists since 1993
Chairman of the Vologda Regional Branch of the All-Russian Creative Public Organization “Union of Russian Artists” since 2010 and up to now
Participant of regional, interregional, All-Russian and international art exhibitions since 1976
The artist works in the technique of coloured prints (etching, aquatint, mezzotint, monotyping – a type of printmaking which produces a unique print or monotype from the printing form onto a sheet of paper). His works are notable for high technical professionalism and individually elaborated painting aesthetic. He paints in oils in the open air. It is necessary for him to catch colour composition, colour state of the nature which he will develop in different motives later. Plein air is a moment of search for him. Works of this painter are remembered irrespective of their names among the multitude of landscapes created by modern masters. You remember the special colour structure of the painting language. Now he is probably the only artist who works in monotyping technique. He is always independent and individual in the colour vision, figurative interpretation of the subject. Works of Nikolay Mishusta attract not only with high professional art of execution, but also with the depth of the subject-matter.
YURI ALEXANDROVICH VORONOV
Graphic artist, painter
Honoured Artist of the Russian Federation since 2003
Member of the Union of Russian Artists since 1983
Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Arts since 2003
Participant of regional, interregional, All-Russian, All-Union and international art exhibitions since 1977
The artist works in tempera, oil and acrylic painting techniques, in the genres of narrative, portrait, landscape and still life. He creates easel graphic works, book illustrations and paints in water-colours. He is an all-round artist. A man, objects, and state of nature inspire Yuri Voronov. Therefore the fact that he works in different genres is quite explainable. But he has his own approach to the landscape. He always reveals the most important precisely. He doesn’t need to add many details. He sees the large and the main in the small. All landscapes painted by Yuri Voronov are filled with individual vision. The artist continues developing realistic traditions of the Russian fine art of the late 19th – the last quarter of the 20th century in his creative work.
OLEG VASILIEVICH PAKHOMOV
Scene designer, designer, painter
Member of the Union of Russian Artists since 1990
Honoured Artist of the Russian Federation since 2008
Participant of regional, interregional, All-Russian, All-Union and international art exhibitions since 1977
The artist works in the sphere of scenic painting, as a designer of museum expositions, in the genres of landscape, still life and interior painting in easel painting, paints in oils and water-colours. Oleg Pakhomov is an artist who needs outdoor painting to use it in other thematic works in future. He prefers motives of the past, but to show the truth of the painted motif, the truth of the colour state of nature is necessary for him. He needs life impressions as additional, but precious material. He often paints in pastel. He painted in oils working en plein air in Kirillov. The artist creates stylized retrospective landscapes drawing upon the traditions of the Russian Modern and Symbolism of the early 20th century. Oleg Pakhomov is one of the most talented and original artists of modern Vologda with his own view on the world and tasks of creative activity.
VIKTOR INNOKENTIEVICH SYSOEV
Painter, muralist
Member of the Union of Russian Artists since 1992
Honoured Artist of the Russian Federation since 2010
Participant of regional, interregional, All-Russian, and All-Union art exhibitions since 1967
The artist creates landscapes, portraits and still lifes painting in oils. He develops the traditions of the Russian lyrical landscape, crates heartfelt images of the architectural ensembles and the nature of the Russian North. Enumerating towns and settlements of the Vologda region, it is difficult to mention a place where Victor Sysoev hasn’t worked. He has been participating in almost all Vologda’s plein air painting trips since the 1980s. He also worked en plein air in Kirillov in autumn 2011. The architectural landscape can be justly regarded as the leading genre of his creative activity within the last years. The harmony of combination of the medieval church architecture with the surrounding scenery always disturbs the sensitive to the beauty man. We can feel delight of this harmony of the world in his pieces painted in Krillov. One of the attractive qualities of Victor Sysoev’s landscapes is contemplative simplicity and cogency of the motif. He always needs life impressions, the truth of time and deeds. He never deviates from it. Working en plein air, he tries to depict exact light and colour state of the nature, find subjects, compositional arrangement and emotional tone.
ANATOLY ALEXANDROVICH BORISOV
Painter
Member of the Union of Russian Artists since 1995
Member of the Vologda Creative and Exhibition Association “Rainbow” since 1996
Participant of regional, and interregional art exhibitions since 1971
The subject of his pieces is the nature of the Russian North. The artist works in the genres of lyrical landscape and still life in which he develops the traditions of the Vologda’s landscape painting of the 20th century. Landscape is the main direction of painting for Anatoly Borisov. He prefers lyrical landscape and open air painting events give him new impressions, especially when it is connected with architectural monuments. It enriches his images in which we feel not only the lyrical side, but also reveal the peculiar character of the northern nature, the historical look of the earth itself.
BRONISLAV ANTONOVICH KURAGO
Muralist, painter
Member of the Union of Artists of the USSR since 1976
Participant of regional, interregional, All-Russian, international art exhibitions since 1966
The artist works in the sphere of monumental and decorative and easel painting, in the genres of landscape, still life and landscape. Bronislav Kurago develops the traditions of the Soviet monumental and decorative painting of the 1960-1980s. As he is a muralist, he has a special attitude to architectural landscape. He can always present architectural monuments as the main element of the landscape. He prefers more decorative sources in colours: cheerful, solemn and elevated. He paints the architecture from a low angle so that it might produce a more imposing effect. Applying the colour masses, he creates strict balanced compositions with deep colours.
IVAN YEGOROVICH BAZANOV
Painter
Member of the International Arts Fund in the section of painting
Member of the Moscow Union of Artists since 1996
Participant of regional, interregional, All-Russian art exhibitions since 1985
He has painted almost all his canvasses from life. Constantly improving his skills, especially when conveying light and air, he loses neither materiality nor colour richness of the nature. The favourite genres of Ivan Bazanov are landscape and still life. Depicting our northern nature in different states, he tells about his feelings, basing his compositions on colours. His affection for the Vologda region is amazing. He joined the circle of the Vologda’s landscape painters with whom he worked en plein air in many places of the Vologda region. He often prefers lyrical landscape. He doesn’t cease to draw inspiration from its enchanting colours. The main creative concept of the artist is to continue traditions of the Russian national realistic school of painting. Landscape holds the central position in his creative work.
