Nikolay
Ivanovich Smirnov

Painter. Member of the Union of artists of the USSR.

One of the oldest artists from Tver . He was born in 1921 in the non-existing village in Hudove Staricha highway. How many people survived the first half of the twentieth century! The age they otehali worthy and extremely rich, their current recreation really honored. Nikolai Smirnov , a member of the Union of artists of Russia, is no exception. His creative career he began - terrible to say - even before the war. Sixteen year-old teenager was fond of drawing, his artistic career began in partnership with artists from Tver , becoming a pupil of the painter Borisov. Borisov also build their artistic Genesis from Ilya Repin. Therefore, the Union jokingly called themselves repinskii fragments, or grandchildren.

Like many peers, in 1941, the young artist went to the front, participated in the defense of Kiev, was seriously wounded Konotop. A year spent in hospitals. One of the shards (not to Repin, but most of these, lethal) hit the right hand, killing the tendon. For a painter it is almost a professional death sentence. But Smirnov did not give up. First learned to write with his left hand, then developed his injured hand. The war then did not let the artist , reflected in many paintings, the most impressive painting, "the Portrait of the orderly".

The main character works by the artist Smirnova was his contemporary, drummer of industrial and agricultural production, as they said, a notable industrialist. It's not just words, flying away like chaff from grain. The pathos of labor was a major in the phenomenon of art as social realism. The hero of the past era were made by the working man, worker, farmer, intellectual. The inexorable passing of time and the radical change of values made us almost forget those once big names. And how easy it is now, years later, to criticize the former ideals! Nevertheless we are grateful to artists of a bygone time. Beacons of those years - Hero of Socialist Labor, laureate of the State prize Lyubov Parfenova, Hero of Socialist labor Evdokia Sapunova, many others - will remain in history thanks largely to the paintings of the artist Smirnov and his brothers in the shop.

What was the art of socialist realism? The Sots art? State propaganda? Grandstanding? Or even best hack? I think the answer to the question depends on the attitude of each particular artist to their work. The ones doing their job honestly, the others didn't hide a cynical attitude to his characters. Smirnov is among the first.

Yeah, and then some government orders. For example, drawing leaders - members of the Politburo. This work approached responsibly. Nikolai says that even very young artist he had to draw Stalin, with photos, of course. Work completed on time and with quality, staged customer. But the agreed fee, the then Chairman of the Executive Committee (the current mayor) had been halved due to ideas about the work of an artist as something light, frivolous. Thank you for not planted, pridralis to any missteps. Since then, Smirnov began to trust to paint large portraits of the then leaders of the country. To the big public holidays - November 7 First of May - they were posted in Kalinin in the Soviet area, depriving the inhabitants of several apartments in the house with the "Volcano" of sunlight. Photography for portraits claimed in Moscow, the Politburo ahead of time and sent to the cities. A giant picture painted on the squares, mosaic, paying special attention to the description of the awards. Over time, old patterns updated, Podrezova for more Star Heroes. The last order of the artist was a portrait of General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee Konstantin Chernenko. Nikolai drew the canvas, but it did not have time to post: the hero died. The artist paid 70 percent of the negotiated price. It was 1985 when lead country was Gorbachev. His portraits on the areas we checked out.

Socialist realism, devoting a significant part of his creative life, Nikolai at the same time mentally has always been close to impressionism. He interprets impressionism as the understanding of the air picture, particularly highlighting the landscapes of sezannistov. Landscapes - a genuine love of the old masters. Unlike the front of socialist realism portraits landscapes (and they are the old masters of many) is executed in the impressionistic style.

Hot key, famous Academic in the country... Smirnova was invited to creative workshops not as a portrait but as a landscape painter. Gradually, the artist has developed a collection of works worthy of admiration. In her provincial landscapes, small towns Russia, bell towers, and embankments, a blur of churches, the spring melt-water rivers, the sky, the floods of rivers, fields, snow, white Church seemed to go in the future with pictures and live their second life. The artist managed in new ways to draw the eternal subject of many painters of Russia. Familiar with the world of nature in Central, owning color, shape, texture, convey a subtlety of tones, the artist strives to capture the moments, in the Faustian stop a moment.

Nikolai and today continues to live a creative life, his work can be seen at many exhibitions. Works by the artist Smirnova and stored in the public galleries, and private collections, including foreign ones. Behind almost seventy years of life in art... the Oeuvre of Nikolai Smirnov has long become part of the artistic history of the Tver region.

(Alexander Bushev. Tver life, "Realist and impressionist" August 9, 2005 (Tuesday) 25755 - 144)