Sandzhiev, Nikita Amoldanovich

The early years

Nikita Sandzhiev was born on January 10, 1924 in a shepherd family in the village of Bor-Nur . Parents named their son Nikita - in honor of the Russian fellow villager, the first to cross the threshold of the house after a weekly blizzard. The first years Nikita spent in the steppes, next to the flock and his father. He lost his parents early, in 1937 he was assigned to an orphanage in Voznesenovka . After seven classes from the orphanage, he was transferred to a ten-year school, located in the Volga region of Kalmykia, bordering on the Astrakhan region . There he first saw the Volga , and then in August 1938, together with a group of excellent students, visited Moscow ^{[5] [6]} as a reward.

In 1941, the seventeen-year-old Sandzhiev filed an application for sending him to the front, but he was sent to the Astrakhan Aviation School, where military aircraft mechanics were trained. In 1942, having become one of the best graduates, he was enrolled in a special school for pilots of the Civil Air Fleet, and then to the Higher School of Military Pilots named after Hero of the Soviet Union V. S. Khzobulinov in Kirovabad ^{[5] [7]} . After the Kalmyks were deported in 1944, Sandzhiev ended up in the Novosibirsk Region ^{[4] [8] [* 1]} .

Siberian period

After the war, Sandzhiev worked as an electrician in one of the state farms near Novosibirsk ^{[* 2]} . Once he fell off an electric pole and severely injured his leg. After recovering, the management of the state farm offered him a cashier position in a local club. There, in addition to the main work, he designed posters and a state-owned wall newspaper and spent all his free time drawing. Over time, his work attracted attention in the regional House of Folk Art. At the exhibition of works by amateur artists, where several watercolors and drawings were presented, Sandzhiev had a chance to get acquainted with the sculptor D. S. Sokolovsky, evacuated from Moscow. In the future, he took an active part in the fate of the aspiring artist. Thanks to his patronage, Sandzhiev managed to get into the fake workshop of the Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theater in 1946 ^{[5] [7]} .

Working under the direction of A.G. Gomulin, a pupil of the famous animal sculptor Artemy Ober , and constant communication with artists and performers, Sandzhiev was gradually drawn into the creative world of Novosibirsk. In parallel with the work, Sandzhiev continued three-year classes in the studio at the House of Folk Art. The new head of the studio, the sculptor Vera Stein, drew attention to the "constant desire to search for the internal structure of things" by the young artist. She pushed Sandzhiev to sculpt and became his first teacher. From Gomulin Sandzhiev learned sculpting technology: stucco modeling, molding, casting and final finishing. Since 1949, Sandzhiev worked as a sculptor in architectural and sculpture workshops at the Novosibirsk Association of Artists. There he made stucco moldings, friezes and decorative reliefs for many buildings of Novosibirsk, executed in the style of the Stalinist Empire , and very quickly became a recognized sculptor ^{[5] [9]} .

In 1950, Sandzhiev was invited to Rubtsovsk in the Altai Territory . There, he took the position of chief specialist in stucco work in the local construction trust and conducted major design work at the Altai Tractor Plant . After moving to Kemerovo in 1952, Sandzhiev worked at the local art fund and first turned to easel sculpture - in fact, it was then that the creative biography of Sandzhiev as a sculptor began. He first took part in the regional art exhibition along with famous masters and was warmly received by critics ^{[10] [11]} .

Belarusian period

On the advice of his comrades, Sandzhiev decided to get an art education. In search of a place, he visited Moscow, Leningrad , the Baltic states , in 1956 he arrived in Minsk , but was late for admission to the school. At the local art fund, he was also denied work, citing a lack of education, but was advised to turn to the famous sculptor and one of the leaders of the Union of Artists of Belarus Zair Azgur . He suggested that, as the only way out, submit at least one work by Sandzhiev to the court of the artistic council, after which a decision on extraordinary admission can be made. Sandzhiev was allocated a place in the workshop of the sculptor V. Poliychuk. Soon his portrait of an elderly woman was seen by Azgur and folk artists of the Byelorussian SSR Aleksey Glebov and Andrei Bembel , who recommended accepting Sandzhiev to the art fund as an exception as an artist with high expectations ^{[12] [13]} .

In 1956-1959, Sandzhiev worked as a sculptor in the Belarusian branch of the Art Fund of the USSR and studied at the Minsk Art Institute . Already in 1957, his sculptural two-figure composition "Steelworkers", also known as "Friendship", was exhibited at the All-Union Art Exhibition in Moscow. The work was repeatedly reproduced, and her images were printed on postcards, so she became widely known. In the same year, Sandzhiev was admitted to the Union of Artists of the USSR , without waiting for the expiration of an obligatory three-year seniority ^{[14] [15]} .

In 1958, Sandzhiev created a sculptural group of Red Army Budennovites, called the "Letter to the Homeland" and later replicated many times for the museums of the USSR. Towards the end of the Belarusian period in 1959, when the sculptor returned to Elista, he emerged as a convinced socialist realist and defined his favorite genre - compositional sculpture and psychological portrait. All further creative activity of Sandzhiev was associated with Kalmykia ^[16] .

Kalmyk period

In the Kalmyk period, Nikita Sandzhiev reached the pinnacle of professional recognition. In the year of his return to Elista, he was awarded the title "Honored Artist of the Kalmyk ASSR." In 1960, he became chairman of the organizing bureau of the Union of Artists of the Kalmyk ASSR and headed it for 11 years. From 1964 to 1974 he was a member of the exhibition committee of the Big Volga zone of the RSFSR. In 1968-1972 he was a member of the board of the Union of Artists of the RSFSR . In 1970-1976 he was awarded creative business trips to Mongolia ^[2] .

Over the decades of his work, Sandzhiev created a gallery of sculptural portraits of cultural figures of Kalmykia, its scientists, workers, veterans of the October Revolution and World War II . The psychologically developed works of the 1960s (“Dombrist”, “The Old Man from Bor-Nur”, “Portrait of an Elderly Woman”) were replaced in the 1970s by strict images of military heroes (“Member of the Civil and Great Patriotic Wars M. T. Bimbaev "," Portrait of the veteran N. V. Badminov "," Portrait of the Hero of the Soviet Union M. A. Selgikov "). Throughout the entire period of the 1960-1980s, Sandzhiev continued to record representatives of the Kalmyk intelligentsia in the sculptural images (poet David Kugultinov , writers Sanji Kalyaev and Khasyr Syan-Belgin , playwright Baatr Basangov , doctors P. Zhemchuyev and Yu. Erentsenov, philologist Ts.-- D. Nominkhanov). At the same time, he performed several monumental works, among which the Elist war memorials and monuments to Oka Gorodovikov and Alexander Pushkin are most famous ^{[17] [18] [15] [19]} .

In the work of Sandzhiev noticeable constant desire to discard all that is superfluous, to achieve maximum expressiveness with minimal means. Often - as in a series of portraits of veterans of the revolutionary movement - his "mean and restrained plastic tricks" additionally helped to show the stamina and purposefulness of the characters. The sculptor often alternated work from life with work from memory, sometimes redoing the work many times in search of the right solution. At the same time, he strove to maintain the first impression of nature as completely as possible and often completed the work in one approach - for example, in three hours at a shepherd's parking lot he fashioned a portrait of the hero of Socialist Labor S.D. Dordzhiev and then sent to the exhibition without additional studio revision. In his works, the sculptor demonstrated high technical mastery of the techniques of artistic processing of various materials, working equally with wood and gypsum, with terracotta and metal ^{[20] [19]} .

War Monuments

In 1965, a memorial complex was opened in the Druzhba park in honor of the 20th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War . Sandzhiev, together with architects I.N. Andreenko and the brothers Mingiyan and Dzhangar Purveev, participated in its creation. Behind the three titanium pylons - “bayonets” at the entrance to the memorial and the stairs leading to the graves and the Eternal Flame, is the central composition of the ensemble - a sculptural group of five three-meter generalized portraits of people of Kalmykia: fighters of the revolution, the Civil and Great Patriotic War and two portraits of a young man and girls as symbols of civilians killed in the war ^{[21] [19] [22]} .

On the 25th anniversary of the liberation of Elista from German troops in 1968, a monument to the soldiers of the 28th army , created by N. A. Sandzhiev and architect M. B. Purveyev, was unveiled on the north-eastern outskirts of the city near the Elista- Volgograd highway. The central element of the monument is the T-34 tank. A stele was erected next to it with a relief image of a tanker, pilot and infantryman and a text listing military units liberating the city ^{[23] [22]} .

Gorodovikov Monument

For many years, Sandzhiev wanted to create a monument to the hero of Kalmykia and the Soviet Union, Oka Gorodovikov . The sculptor managed to meet with the elderly general once and for a short while - on his last visit to Elista. In 1956, Sandzhiev created a bust of Gorodovikov for the museum of local lore, and in this work he was helped by the commander of the 1st Horse Army, who remembered the general well, Marshal S. M. Budyonny . Later, Sandzhiev visited the farm of Wet Elmut , where Gorodovikov came from, as well as the village of Budennovskaya (formerly - the village of Platovskaya), where the Museum of the 1st Cavalry Army worked. By order of the local House of Culture, he created a life-size group portrait of two colleagues in the revolutionary struggle - Gorodovikov and Budyonny. Further creative searches led to the creation of a vivid portrait of Gorodovikov with a horse's head, executed in a tree ^[24] .

In 1976, the opening of the equestrian monument to Oka Gorodovikov in the center of Elista in the square named after the commander took place. Creating a dynamic equestrian sculpture, Sandzhiev for a long time worked at a stud farm, studying the anatomy of horses. He was also one of those who supported the idea of ​​abandoning the traditional pedestal in favor of the steppe mound. The sculptor abandoned the idea of ​​putting a saber in the rider’s uplifted hand, citing the fact that Oka was not only a military man, but also a public figure, and the monument itself is in the center of a peaceful city ^{[25] [19]} .

Memorials

• The memorial complex of heroes of the Civil and World War II in the park "Friendship", Elista (concrete, 1965) ^{[26] [27]} - an object of cultural heritage of the Republic of Kalmykia ^[28] ;
• The memorial to the soldiers of the 28th army in Elista (concrete, 1968) is an object of cultural heritage of the Republic of Kalmykia ^{[26] [28]} ;
• The obelisk to the victims of fascism, partisans and civilians shot during the Second World War in Elista (Gashun beam) is an object of cultural heritage of the Republic of Kalmykia ^[28] ;
• The memorial "Grieving Mother" in the village of Yashkul at the burial place of soldiers of the 28th army (1973) is an object of cultural heritage of the Republic of Kalmykia ^{[28] [29]} .

Monuments

• Monument to the victims of fascism in the village of Krasnomikhailovsky (1967) ^[30] ;
• “ Shepherd with a dog ” in the village of Priyutnoe (1970) - an object of cultural heritage of the Republic of Kalmykia ^[28] ;
• Monument of "Eternal Glory" in the city of Neftekumsk, Stavropol Territory (1975);
• Monument to the Hero of the Soviet Union, Colonel General O. I. Gorodovikov in Elista on Gorodovikov Square (in collaboration with Mark and Lev Roberman, bronze, aluminum, 1976) - an object of cultural heritage of the Republic of Kalmykia ^{[26] [28]} ;
• Monument to A. S. Pushkin in Elista (1983) ^[26] .

Easel Sculpture

• "Steelworkers" (another name - "Friendship") (bronze, 1956) - property of the State Art Gallery of the Belarusian SSR ^{[26] [* 3]} ;
• “Letter to the Homeland” (bronze, 1958) - property of the State Art Gallery of the Belorussian SSR ^[26] ;
• The composition "A protracted explanation" (1962) ^[31] ;
• "Young local historians" (gypsum, 1968) ^[26] ;
• "Soldier of the Revolution" (tinted plaster, 1968) - in the collection of the Republican Museum of Local Lore. N. N. Palmova ^[26] ;
• “Departing Mongolia” (tree, 1974) - came into the ownership of the Ministry of Culture of the RSFSR ^[26] ;
• “Portrait of the Artist Fyodor Kalmyk” (casting, 1981) - in the collection of the KSCG ^[26] .

Sculptural Portraits

• “Portrait of B. Basangov” (tinted plaster, 1959) - owned by the Kalmyk Drama Theater ^[26] ;
• “Grandfather Saiko” (tinted plaster, 1961) - in the KGKG meeting ^[26] ;
• “Portrait of a Young Man” (tinted plaster, 1962) - in the collection of the KSCG ^[26] ;
• The Dombrist (1964) ^[30] ;
• “The Old Man from Bor-Nur” (casting, metal, 1965) - in the KGKG meeting ^[26] ;
• “Portrait of S. D. Harechko” (1962) ^[32] ;
• "Portrait of a Hero of the Soviet Union E.T. Delikov " (tinted plaster, 1964) in the collection of the Republican Museum of Local Lore N. N. Palmova ^[26] ;
• “Portrait of O. I. Gorodovikov” (1956) ^[33] ;
• “Portrait of B. Mandzhieva” (1962) ^[34] ;
• “Portrait of D. V. Sychev” (1963) ^[35] ;
• “ Dzhangarchi ” (1964) ^[36] ;
• “Dombrista” (tinted plaster, 1968) - in the artist’s collection ^[26] ;
• “Portrait of Narma Shapshukova ” (tree, 1977) ^[26] ;
• "Portrait of the Honored Doctor of the RSFSR and the Kalmyk ASSR P.P. Zhemchuyev" (casting, aluminum, 1964) - in the collection of the KSCG ^[26] ;
• “Portrait of S. M. Budyonny” (tree, 1967) - in the collection of the KSCG ^[26] ;
• “Member of the Civil War E. A. Kuleshov” (tree, 1965) - in the KGKG meeting ^[26] ;
• “Portrait of D. N. Kugultinov ” (tree, 1974) - owned by the Ministry of Culture of the RSFSR ^[26] ;
• “Portrait of a Civil War participant S. Seligeev” (concrete, tinted plaster, 1962) - in the artist’s collection ^[26] ;
• “Portrait of O. I. Gorodovikov with the head of a horse” (1970) ^[37]
• “Portrait of the People's Poet of the Kalmyk ASSR S.K. Kalyaev ” (marble, 1970) - in the collection of the KGCG ^[26] ;
• “Portrait of the Doctor of Philological Sciences C.-D. Nominkhanova ”(marble, 1971) - in the KGKG meeting ^[26] ;
• “Portrait of the Hero of Socialist Labor burt law B. D. Ochirov” (tinted gypsum, 1973) - in the collection of the KSCG ^[26] ;
• "Portrait of the poet H. B. Xiang-Belgin " (gypsum, 1974) - in the collection of the artist ^[38]
• “Portrait of M. T. Bimbaev, Member of the Civil and Great Patriotic Wars” ( terracotta , 1975) - in the KGCG meeting ^[26] ;
• "The participant of the Great Patriotic War N.V. Badminov" (tree, 1976) - in the meeting of the KSCG ^[26] ;
• "Portrait of the Honored Doctor of the RSFSR and the Kalmyk Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic Yu. S. Erenzenov" (casting, metal, 1977) - in the collection of the KSCG ^[26] ;
• “Portrait of the Hero of Socialist Labor F. M. Dedov” (casting, metal, 1978) - in the KGKG collection ^[26] ;
• “Portrait of the Hero of the Soviet Union M. A. Selgikov ” (tinted gypsum, 1979) - in the artist’s collection ^[26] ;
• “Portrait of O. Elzyatinov, a participant in the Civil and Great Patriotic Wars” (tinted gypsum, 1980) - in the KGKG collection ^[26] ;
• “Portrait of the Hero of Socialist Labor S. D. Dordzhiev” (casting, metal, 1980) - in the KGKG meeting ^[26] ;
• "EEZh (grandmother)" (casting, aluminum, 1980) - in the KGKG meeting ^[26] ;

• Certificate of honor of the Presidium of the Supreme Council of the RSFSR , 1965 ^[2] .
• Medal "For Labor Valor" , 1967 ^[2] .
• Anniversary medal “For Valiant Labor. In commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin ” , 1970 ^[2] .
• Honored Artist of the Kalmyk Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, 1959 ^[2] .
• Laureate of the State Prize of the Kalmyk ASSR named after O. I. Gorodovikova, 1968 ^[2] .
• Honored Artist of the RSFSR , 1974 ^[2] .
• People's Artist of the RSFSR , 1984 ^[2] .

Nikita Sandzhiev had three children:

• Dmitry is a national artist of the Russian Federation , a full member of the Russian Academy of Arts ^{[4] [39] [40]} .
• David is a physicist ^{[4] [41] [42]} .
• Vera is an artist ^{[41] [43]} .

By the first of September 2015, at school No. 12, the Elists opened a bust of Nikita Sandzhiev by the work of the Honored Artist of Russia Vladimir Vaskin and the caster Sergey Korobeinikov ^{[44] [45]} .

Comments

Sources

• V. A. Deynega. Nikita Sandzhiev: [Essay on creativity]. - Elista: Kalmyk Book Publishing House , 1984. - 64 p.
• I. G. Kovalev. Nikita Sandzhiev. - Elista: Kalmyk Book Publishing House , 1979. - 32 p.
• Different colors of one palette // In the constellation of equal and fraternal. - Elista: Kalmyk Book Publishing House , 1982. - S. 104 - 116.