Hereditary nobleman Nikolai Petrovich Osipov (1861-1917), one of the members of the group of Samara artists, was not a native of Samara. He was born in Tiflis, he became a professional soldier following the example of his heroic grandfather Arkhip Osipov, who died in 1840, but the army Nikolay Petrovich not attracted: from childhood he was irresistibly drawn art. Started with self-education, and in 1885 Osipov became a disciple of the famous marine painter, Professor I. K. Aivazovsky. After two years, began to independent creativity, but imitated the teacher, and even wore a beard of the same shape.
To Samara Osipov arrived in 1892. Lived in own house on the corner of Kazan and the Factory (now Alexei Tolstoy and Ventseka). Was a teacher of drawing in the agricultural and commercial schools, had their own workshop, and all his life recorded his impressions in sketchbooks. "Volga, the artist wrote in 1906 in his past has so many wonderful paintings, untouched by the artist's brush that one photographing them would take a long time." The Volga river in different seasons, in different States he writes all lived in Samara. The result is 1,500 sketches and drawings, 200 of which were exhibited at the exhibitions of the Samara artists.
During the Russo-Japanese war of 1904 Osipov visited China and Manchuria, where he brought many works. Some of them are kept in the Museum's collection, including "Evening in a Chinese village" (1906).
In 1914, again came to the front, and in 1917, died - the war hasn't let go of the artist.
In Rostov-on-don from his heirs preserved paint, notebooks, brochures with notes by the artist and 29 of the sketches, created from 1888 to 1907: among them there are the types of Samara, Volga, Black sea, favorite author, ships, mountains. Among the sketches are particularly attractive two. Both written sea. One in the spirit of Aivazovsky: break out the dark, swirling clouds the sun's rays like spotlights illuminate the waves of the restless desert of the sea. In the second Bay with standing in her sailing ships. In the landscape of peace and bliss: the sea is calm, the sky is almost cloudless...
( section T. Aleksashina "a Disciple of Aivazovsky" the Samara information portal)
