(1902, the village of Outdoor Vyas Penza province. – 1946 village of Zhegalovo, Moscow region)
Painter, graphic artist
In 1920 he enrolled in the Penza art College, where he studied in the Studio of A. Navigator.
1922-moved to Moscow and entered the Higher art and technical studios (VKhUTEMAS), where he studied in the studios of A. Osmyorkin, I. Mashkov and P. Konchalovsky.
1925 the work of the artist "Bread" was exhibited at the world exhibition in Paris.
1926 participated in the exhibition of paintings society of artists "Genesis".
1927 graduated from the Vkhutein (formerly VKhUTEMAS), in the same year participated in the exhibition society "Wing",
1928 – in the exhibition marking the tenth anniversary of the October revolution, as well as in the exhibition of works of the society of Moscow artists (MKO).
1928 taught at the Ryazan art College
1930 – at the Moscow regional art school memory of 1905 (the MOSS).
1931-sent to the creative business trip to Murmansk, which resulted in one of his best – known works, the "Northern Venus."
1937 solo exhibition in the MOSS and DK "SERP I Molot" in Moscow.
1941 drafted into the army.
1942-demobilized, had a personal exhibition in House of artists on the Upper Maslovka, 15.
1945-1946 he worked on the murals of the Church of St. Nicholas in the village of Zhegalovo.
Born in the village Outdoor Vyas, Penza province into the family of a village priest. Vocational education began in the Penza school of art (1920-21) and continued at VKhUTEMAS, which he entered in 1922. Chirkov, teachers who were not.And.Shestakov, A. A. Osmerkin, I. Mashkov, P. Konchalovsky, brilliantly learned the lessons “ of bubnovaya”. Written in his third year in the Studio Mashkov still life “Bread” is not only got from a teacher a rating of “100 points”, but was shown at the Paris international exhibition in 1925.
Painting traditions of the Moscow school, the continuer and the Keeper whom was A. N. Chirkov, were combined in his work with intense spiritual quests, and an acute sense of modernity. In his works etched a complex dramatic image of the era and the spiritual path of the artist. This is most clearly expressed in a series of “self portraits” and a series of “still lifes” and “interior” workshop, created in 1930-40-ies.
Work in this chamber genres coexisted from the artist with a penchant for epic multi-art canvas. Like many of his contemporaries, Teal tried to tell about the time in the genre of thematic paintings. However, the themes of his work were far from the front of the custom works that defined the look of the era. He was drawn to dramatic moments in modern history. The first major work of the artist was launched in the year of the 10th anniversary of the October revolution the painting "the year 1917" (1927-32), where the author captured the defeat of the distillery in the capture of the city of Penza with detachments of the red Army. Massive in size (almost 2 meters x 3 meters) canvas Chirkov was thinking on the subject of “cruel and merciless” popular revolt.
Equally unconventional was the report by the artist on a creative assignment in the Murmansk region in 1931. Chirkov, obliged to reflect “heroic feats of labor of the people”, created the painting “Northern Venus” in which tried to create a complex, symbolically filled with the image.
Based on the high tradition of Russian historical painting of the XIX century, in his work Chirkov he turned again and again to the eternal questions of moral and spiritual choices of faith. Among his major works is "Station" (1932-1939), "Jordan" (1943), "On the porch" (1946). They were not known to his contemporaries. Today, thanks to the restoration of the complex large-format paintings, we have the opportunity to see all major works.
In 1945-46, the artist worked on the murals of the Church of St. Nicholas in the village of Zhegalovo, near Moscow. Surviving sketches show a surprising combination of painting style and modern artistic manner.
