Smirnov, Boris Vasilyevich

B.V. Smirnov was born in the city of Vladikavkaz in the family of a retired Major General, a teacher of mathematics, V.F. Smirnov.

The original art education B.V. Smirnov received in Kiev, in the art school N. I. Murashko . Further training B. V. Smirnova held in St. Petersburg. There he studied in the studio of Academician L.Ye. Dmitriev-Kavkazsky , then - at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts in the class of landscape painting under Professor A. Kiselev . He exhibits his paintings at the Spring Exhibitions at the Academy and participates in the exhibition of the Society of St. Petersburg Artists. After graduating from the Academy of Arts, having received the right to work as an art teacher, B. V. Smirnov was forced to leave Petersburg and move to the south because of tuberculosis. Here began his teaching activities. At first he taught drawing at the gymnasium in Yekaterinoslav ; later he participated in the creation of the Teacher's Institute (later - Pedagogical) in Yekaterinoslav. As a student, B. V. Smirnov began exhibiting his works at various exhibitions, performed many illustrations for children's books and magazines. His works were presented at the exhibition of the Association of Wanderers, the First Mobile Exhibition of Painting and Graphics, held in Moscow in 1929, exhibitions devoted to the 20th anniversary of the Komsomol and the 20th anniversary of the Red Army, the first exhibition of watercolor painting by Moscow artists (1937), the exhibition “Landscapes of Our Motherland "(1942), the exhibition of works of artists-teachers of Moscow (1970). B. V. Smirnov participated in all exhibitions of the Association of Realist Artists. His works were also presented at the exhibition of educational paintings on geography (1960) and at several exhibitions of works from the collection of R. M. Vugina (1974, 1975, 1976 and 1977).

The son of the artist, painting professor G. B. Smirnov and grandson A. G. Smirnov, one of the brightest artists of the sixties non-conformist generation, a writer and a publicist, became worthy successors of the family’s creative traditions.

At various times, two personal exhibitions of B. V. Smirnov were organized in Moscow. After the artist’s death in 1956, the post-mortem exhibition of his works was held in the Art Museum of Dnepropetrovsk and in 1957 in Moscow. In 1903, he participated as an artist in the expedition of the Geographical Society to Central Asia. The travel diary of the artist was published as a separate book “In the Steppes of Turkestan” (1914). During the Russian-Japanese war of 1904-1905. B. V. Smirnov went to the front as a volunteer (he was not subject to conscription). After returning from the war, B. V. Smirnov settled in the south of Ukraine in Pavlograd, where he taught drawing at the gymnasium. Here he met his future wife, a children's writer, E. A. Pavlova, also a teacher at the gymnasium. 1911–1920 - participates in exhibitions of the Society of Yekaterinoslav Artists and organizes exhibitions of paintings at the Yekaterinoslav Scientific Society for the workers of the Bryansk Plant, where he teaches drawing and reads the history of the arts on working courses. 1913 - participates in the exhibition of artists in Odessa and illustrates the classics and children's books. Back in St. Petersburg, B.V. Smirnov took part in student meetings and distributed underground literature, was arrested in the Irkutsk prison, where he executed portraits of political prisoners. During the years of revolution, he created huge murals of propaganda content, the sketches of which are kept in the art gallery of Dnepropetrovsk. At the same time, he wrote a large number of scenery for the Yekaterinoslav Opera Theater. Since 1921, the Smirnov family settled in Moscow. The artist was entrusted with the organization of a network of schools for the children of construction workers. In Moscow, he taught with A. M. Vasnetsov at the staging department of the school-studio them. V.I. Nemirovich-Danchenko at the Moscow Art Theater. A. M. Vasnetsov attracted B. V. Smirnov to the creative study of the capital, conducted in those years by the Old Moscow Society. During the war years B.V. Smirnov addressed the topic of the heroic past of the Russian people. Then a large monumental canvas “The Entrance of Alexander Nevsky to Pskov after the Battle of the Ice” was created, transferred to the Museum of Pereslavl-Zalessky. Boris Vasilyevich Smirnov left twelve notebooks of memories under the general title “My Memories of Artists”. In the memoirs of B. V. Smirnov one can find interesting judgments about meetings with such famous artists as K. A. Korovin, A. M. Vasnetsov, A. E. Arkhipov; on the anniversary of V. D. Polenov and I. E. Repin, on V. A. Serov, N. A. Kasatkin, S. V. Malyutin. The young years of B. V. Smirnov were held in Ukraine. For the rest of his life he retained love for this land. Therefore, it is not surprising that nature and people of Ukraine, its history and literature occupy a large place in his work. More than 40 works of the artist are in the Dnipropetrovsk regional museum of local lore. Being already an experienced artist, B. V. Smirnov created a series of autolithographs "At the banks of the Dnieper". One of the favorite authors of the artist was the great Ukrainian poet T. G. Shevchenko. In 1896–1898 a series of drawings was created in memory of the poet: “Portrait of T. G. Shevchenko”, “View of the grave of T. G. Shevchenko”, “Sandy bank of the Dnieper near Kanev”, etc. There are more than fifty works by B. V. Smirnov the museums of Russia, the countries of the former USSR, including the State Tretyakov Gallery, the Russian Museum, the Museum of History and Reconstruction of Moscow, the State Historical Museum. ^[one]

• A series of autolithographs "On the banks of the Dnieper" ( State Tretyakov Gallery , Russian Museum , State Museum of Fine Arts named after A. Pushkin )
• "Lake Uzhny", "Valdai Lake" ( State Tretyakov Gallery )
• “Kovylnaya Steppe”, “Terek in the Darial Gorge”, “Ukrainian Night” for Moscow State University
• A series of graphic works dedicated to the memory of the great Ukrainian poet T. G. Shevchenko. (State Museum of T.G. Shevchenko)
• Works for the project of the society “Old Moscow” (together with A. M. Vasnetsov) Museum Association “Museum of Moscow” , State Historical Museum .

• All exhibitions of the Association of Realist Artists
• Exhibition of the Association of the Wanderers
• The first traveling exhibition of painting and graphics (Moscow, 1929)
• Exhibition dedicated to the twentieth anniversary of the Lenin Komsomol
• The exhibition dedicated to the twentieth anniversary of the Red Army
• First solo exhibition (1935)
• The first exhibition of watercolor painting by Moscow artists (1937)
• Personal exhibition (1938)
• Exhibition "Landscapes of Our Motherland" (1942)

Posthumous exhibitions

• Exhibition of Works Art Museum of Dnepropetrovsk (1956)
• Exhibition of Works Moscow. (1957) In the building of the publishing house "Enlightenment"
• Exhibition (1959) In the building of Uchpedgiza Organizers: Moscow branch of the Union of Artists of the RSFSR, State Pedagogical Publishing House of the Ministry of Education of the RSFSR
• Exhibition of educational paintings on geography (1960)
• Exhibitions of works from the collection of R. M. Vugina (1974, 1975, 1976, 1977)

• Essay "In the steppes of Turkestan" in 1914. Klyukin Publishing House.
• Monograph “Morphological Problems of the Visual Language” 1953-1954.
• Memoirs of the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905 "From the memories of the young artist of the Japanese war"
• "My memories of artists." Twelve notebooks of memories of meetings with KA Korovin, A. M. Vasnetsov, A. E. Arkhipov, on the anniversary of V. D. Polenov and I. E. Repin, about V. A. Serov, N. A. Kasatkin , S.V. Malyutine.

Other sources of information .

• Memories of Professor R.Gekker and artist F. Melnikov
• Catalog of the exhibition of works by Boris Vasilyevich Smirnov. July 1959. Moscow
• "The creative way of the artist." Article O.Resinoy and S.Shilo about the posthumous exhibition of works by B. V. Smirnov
• "The dynasty of artists." V. Semenov. Newspaper "For Communism" (1965)
• "As a gift to the museum." V. Rozov.
• "Eternal life in art" M. Peshkov

• Boris Vasilievich Smirnov. Official Facebook Page
• artru.info persons Boris Smirnov
• Siberian Sketches of Boris Vasilyevich Smirnov Encyclopedia-reader of the Irkutsk Region and Baikal
• History of Russia until 1917
• Maxima Library
• Shepherd M. Yuvіlene vidannya "Kobzar" // Sicheslav. - 2008. - № 2. - p. 37. (ukr.)
• Novosibirsk State Museum of Local Lore (OGKM)
• Boris Smirnov's Graphics Collection in the Collection of the Novosibirsk State Museum of Local Lore (OGKM) (The Library of Congress)
• Encyclopedia of Ukraine / V. Kubiyovich . - Paris; New York: Molodev Life, 1954-1989. (in Ukrainian)
• About Boris Smirnov on the site of the Chuvash State Art Museum
• About Boris Smirnov on the site of the Ulyanovsk Art Gallery (village Ulyanovo, Kaluga region, RF)
• About Boris Smirnov on the on-line website of the Encyclopedia of Painting and Graphics art-catalog.ru (rus.)