Exhibition of works by Vladimir Stein

The Russian Academy of Arts presents an exhibition of works by Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Arts Vladimir Albertovich Stein. The exhibition will include more than 30 paintings, many of which have been created in recent years and have not yet been presented to a wide range of viewers.

“For me, an exhibition in the building of the Academy of Arts is, first of all, a huge responsibility. Or rather, even a small advance. After all, if you remember the history of the mansion on Prechistenka, then a shiver runs down your back. What kind of people lived here! This is Count Sergei Potemkin, and, of course, the brilliant collector and connoisseur of art Ivan Morozov,” says the author of the exhibition.

In his professional activity, the artist relies on the traditions of the Russian realistic school. He is tirelessly looking for new means of expression in the field of color solutions and plastic clarity of the image in order to find an artistic language that is understandable to the viewer, and at the same time reflecting his personal ideals and aspirations. Vladimir Stein develops the "Serov" line, trying to expand the range of possibilities of realism through the achievements of impressionism and strengthening the role of graphics in painting, which previously had a subordinate character. That is why he invariably pays special attention to drawing, considering it the fundamental principle of art.

The author’s work is multifaceted: with the same skill he creates easel works, graphic and monumental works. The artist’s contemporaries are of great interest, which is clearly reflected in the portraits he creates. All the attention of the painter is focused on the personality of the model, her character, mood and inner world. It is impossible not to note the masterfully painted portrait of Albert Alexandrovich (“Plotnik”, 2003), which contains so much inner strength and persuasiveness that it steps over the boundaries of a simple natural portrait. The person depicted on it ceases to be a specific person, he becomes a generalizing image of the “Russian artisan”. Close in mood and the image of a colleague, the artist Pavel Ryzhenko.

Thanks to the colorful appearance of the character and the skill of the author, one of the incarnations of Ilya Muromets is revealed to us - the state of an unstraightened spring, which makes this male image a kind of personification of all of Russia. The viewer is face to face with the person represented in the portrait thanks to the enlarged format. Peering into the faces, the author tries to read and show not only the emotions of the person being portrayed, but also his emotional experiences. Especially lyrical are the images of the artist’s friends and relatives, as well as his wife and daughters, who often serve as his models (“Marina”, 2014-2019; “Daria”, 2020-2021; “Elizabeth”, 2020-2021).

Another important genre in the master’s work is landscape. Not indifferent to the history of his country, he constantly travels to the picturesque corners of Russia and captures them. Many works are dedicated to Moscow, which has become one of the main sources of inspiration for the artist - it appears as a city with a rich history that has survived a lot, but has not lost its charm. Among the works of recent years are Shkolnaya Street on a Winter Day (2020); Moscow Street (2021) and others.

Vladimir Stein’s special love for nature is visible in his southern landscapes, which were the result of creative trips to his homeland in the Crimea and sunny Italy, which was visited by all the great Russian artists. Colorful landscapes, reminiscent of both original travel notes and finished impression canvases, are full of unflagging interest in life. The exhibition will feature "Antique Ruins" (2000), "In Spring in Balaklava. Cembalo Fortress (2008), Fountain in the Livadia Palace (2014), Roman Forum (2019). The artist often depicts contemporaries on quiet medieval streets (“Old Genoa”, 2019) or at the boundless sea horizon (“Soon to School”, 2018), where people who lived in bygone times could also look harmoniously. This gives the author’s art a timeless imprint.

The text is based on an article by Tatyana Troitskaya.

Vladimir Albertovich Stein was born in 1967 in Simferopol. In 1987 he graduated from the Crimean Art College named after H. S. Samokish, where he studied in the studio under the guidance of L. V. Balkind. In the same year he entered the Moscow State Art Institute. V. I. Surikov, to the portrait studio of the People’s Artist of the USSR, Academician of the Russian Academy of Arts I. S. Glazunov. After graduating from the institute, the artist began teaching at the Ilya Glazunov Russian Academy of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture, where he is the head of the painting department. For many years, as part of creative groups, he participated in the creation of the interiors of the Grand Kremlin Palace (building "B"), in the painting of churches in the Urals, in Moscow and the Moscow region, the palace of Alexei Mikhailovich in Kolomenskoye, etc.