Natalia Ponomareva. POST HOLENKOVO. PICTURES OF MATUS NATALIA. Painting

In the Tver region in the Selizharovsky district in the village of Pogost Golenkovo, an artist lives, the mother of ten children, two of whom are adopted, mother Natalia Ponomareva. Pogost Golenkovo - a wonderful place. Everything is wonderful here: the Tikhvin river, and the church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker with a high bell tower, and the priest’s house with a garden and a kitchen garden, and the inhabitants of this place.

Natalia herself speaks best of all about herself in a “creative biography” written for the Nika auction a couple of years ago:

“I was asked to write a creative biography. I thought about it. After all, I am 59 years old and what can I tell about myself as a creative person?

Since childhood, I loved to draw, and dad told me that I would be an artist. This is probably why I was sent to an art school, but I went there reluctantly, because it was not very interesting.

An interesting life began when I entered the Abramtsevo Art-Industrial School. Many creative personalities studied there, and there was much to learn. Unfortunately, I did not have the ability to resist a bohemian lifestyle and a year later my physical and mental health shook sharply. I went on academic leave, returned home, got a job as a graphic designer, entered the evening school. Meanwhile, in my hometown of Kalinin, an art school was opened to them. A.G. Venetsianova, into which I transferred and successfully finished.

It so happened that from my youth I drew and wrote my creative works “for myself”, not hoping that they would interest anyone. Then, 25 years ago, by the will of fate, we moved to the village, raised children, started a farm. I had to do art in fits and starts. Now the children have grown up, and the opportunity has appeared to do things you love more seriously! But, living in a village, I did not dare to dream that my work might interest someone. ”

Natalia’s work allows you to immerse yourself in the world surrounding the artist. This is a kind of “Hourly Book”, where pictures of rural labor of people and state of nature replace one another, deprived of all the vain. Pogost Golenkovo - in winter, spring, summer, autumn. People are often depicted in the paintings of the artist. They are engaged in rural affairs, gardening, fishing, harvesting, just looking at the movement of the Tikhvin River. Almost all the works of Natalia present the same person. This is Mikhail Petrovich. Always in felt boots and earflaps - he catches fish, plays chess, is sad, sleeps or wanders along the road leading to the temple. A little dog runs cheerfully ahead or behind Mikhail Petrovich… And even if Mikhail Petrovich is somehow not in the picture, we feel his presence. So he just walked along the path and disappeared behind the church, and maybe now he will come out from behind the fence and go somewhere further… We can safely say that Mikhail Petrovich is genius loci.

The story about the artist will be incomplete, if you do not add a few words about the family of Natalia. Let us turn again to its text:

“You can write that my husband is a priest and an icon painter. The eldest son is a woodcarver, and he himself builds a house in Golenkovo. The second son is a disabled person with one leg, but carpentry and singing on the choir. The eldest daughter graduated from a regency school, married to a priest, they have three children and they live in Ukraine. Another son graduated from seminary and theological academy, teaches at our Sunday school and sings on the choir. Another daughter graduated from Gnesinka and sings on a choir in Moscow. Anya graduated from the Art College. A.G. Venetsianova, lives with us and studies icon painting. Varya is a 3rd year student in Venetsianovka.

You can write that we wanted one of the children to stay in the Selizharovsky district. And so it happened, at least now three of the children here. We tried to make the children love this land. And all of them, and who lives far away or studies somewhere, everyone loves Golenkovo. I was mistaken in the calculations)))) Now there are four! Who is in Golenkovo, who is in Selizharovo.

You can write that we have embroidery and icon-painting workshops at the Selizharovskaya church, Sunday school. While the children were small, I studied at the Sunday School, and now my son is studying. And to myself, I don’t know what to write. I have no personal life besides drawing. ”

Once in a conversation, Natalia said: “I want to glorify Pogost Golenkovo!” It seems that she managed to do this fully.

Natalya Zvonareva