Anniversary exhibition of graphics by Alexei Shmarinov

The Russian Academy of Arts presents a retrospective exhibition of works by the People’s Artist of the Russian Federation and Academician of the Russian Academy of Arts Alexei Dementievich Shmarinov, dedicated to the 90th anniversary of the master. The exposition will include more than 50 watercolors, graphic works from the series "Zadonshchina", "Heroes of the Russian people of the XIII-XV centuries", "Battle of Kulikovo" and a series of illustrations for the collection "On the Kulikovo Field".

Alexey Shmarinov is a representative of a well-known artistic dynasty. His father Dementy Alekseevich Shmarinov (1907-1999) was a famous Russian graphic artist, illustrator of the works of many prominent Russian and foreign writers. Alexey Dementievich was born in Moscow in 1933, since childhood he lived in Abramtsevo near Moscow. The beauty of these places, the historical and spiritual aura left an indelible mark on his soul, placed vital and moral accents.

Having begun his creative activity in 1955 with paintings that drew attention to himself, he soon began to engage mainly in graphic art. His talent is also subject to easel graphics, and illustration and design of books - historical and modern. He is fluent in all graphic techniques - unique and printed. Over time, watercolor became his favorite technique. For several decades, he has been working on a series of large-format watercolor paintings "Russia - my love", which has received international recognition, with its subtle lyrical penetration, tremulousness of feelings, and symphony of sound.

Aleksey Shmarinov paints landscapes using his richest creative experience, the entire arsenal of professional techniques, all the features of watercolor technique - its transparency, luminosity and airiness. He avoids unnecessary detail, builds compositions on the relationship of large color spots, which is why his works acquire a monumental sound. This series is constantly updated with new works. Both compatriots and foreign admirers of his art perceive these works as a wonderful poetic portrait of Russia, imbued with filial love for the Motherland. Its main theme is the Russian land, its unique original beauty, its heroic and long-suffering history.

A connoisseur of Russian historical texts and annals, A. D. Shmarinov conceived and created a series of fundamental collection books “Stories of Russian annals and military stories of the XIV-XVI centuries.” Noted by many domestic and foreign awards, as well as his easel series on a historical theme: “On the Kulikovo field”, “Zadonshchina”, “Heroes of the Russian people of the XIII-XV centuries”, which the academician, to D.S. Likhachev highly appreciated, they carry an effective emotional patriotic charge. His easel graphic series "Kamchatka", "Sky over the Motherland" and others have firmly entered the history of Russian art.

A passionate traveler, the author visited the most remote corners of the country, which he often recalls: “Starting from the fifties, a series of unimaginable romantic trips. Arkhangelsk, Dikson, Novaya Zemlya, East Siberian Islands - on an icebreaker. Football on ice a few hundred kilometers from the North Pole. Fabulous, mist-covered bay of Provision. Journey through the jungles of eastern Pakistan. Egypt, India, Ceylon, Indonesia, Vietnam - as a sailor on merchant ships. Later, in the sixties - Italy, Karelia, the Kola Peninsula. Alone in Kamchatka - on foot, on horseback, on "corn" and ships. Lunch at the threshold of the "Devil’s Lair" - on the edge of the crater of the fire-breathing Avachinsky volcano. Even later, in the seventies - the Middle East, Central Africa, Khartoum, Addis Ababa, Aksum, Lake Tana. Hunting in the savannah for pharaohs. AND,

The artist has an extraordinary literary talent. He is the author of several books and articles, the scope of which is far from limited to the problems of art. His book “Abramtsevo is my destiny” (2013) is the fruit of many years of hard work of the author.

Great are the merits of Alexei Dementievich in the field of pedagogy, the aesthetic education of children, and the preservation of monuments of Russian culture. Since 1997, he has been the head of the Creative Graphic Workshop of the Russian Academy of Arts in Moscow, where many dozens of young artists who currently represent Russian graphic art in our country and far beyond its borders have been trained.

The art of the master is known and recognized, exhibitions of his works were successfully held in various cities of Russia and in many countries of the world. The exposition in the halls of the Russian Academy of Arts is already the 61st personal exhibition of Alexei Shmarinov. During his more than half a century of creative, pedagogical and social activity, the artist proved himself to be a comprehensively gifted person with a high professional culture, which largely determined the achievements of modern domestic art.

As part of the opening of the exhibition, a round table will be held, which will be attended by members of the Graphics Department of the Russian Academy of Arts, colleagues and relatives of the author, as well as specialists studying his work.