Semernya, Alexander Fedorovich

Childhood

Oles Semernya was born on August 2, 1936 in the village of Nikolaevka, Berdyansk district, Zaporizhia region . Childhood passed in the area of Mariupol . His mother is Maria Andreevna Kasyan, his father is Fedor G. Semernya. Because Mom worked as a nurse in a German hospital during the German occupation , Olesya, together with his mother and younger brother, were exiled to the city of Dzhezkazgan in the Karaganda region in Kazakhstan (near Baikonur) in the late 40s. He went from here and returned here after serving in the Soviet Army (1954-1956).

First works

Drew since childhood. After the army, longing for Ukraine leads Semeryna to the city of Voznesensk in the Nikolaev region . There he marries and begins to paint professionally. Becomes a member of the creative association "Pribuzhie", where in 1970 held his first solo exhibition. In 1977 he received the title "Master of Folk Art." However, almost no one (including his wife - a doctor with a higher education) does not perceive his "wrong" drawing. Having not found support and understanding, Oles escapes from civilization “into the weeds”, leads a wandering lifestyle, then finds a lodging in the village. Curve Wasteland in Nikolayevshchina, and subsequently leaves Ukraine, as it has neither its own housing, nor a workshop.

Moldavian Period, 1980s

For a long time he lives and works in Balti ( Moldova ), where many paintings are born, of which - “The Old City”, “Tarutino”, “Water Carrier”, “Altar”. However, the artist does not break ties with Ukraine. Severny's first exhibition was held in Nikolaev in the early 80s, which was organized by the local art critic Valery Malina. The real discovery of the artist occurred after the exhibition at the Institute of Art Studies, Folklore and Ethnography of the Academy of Sciences (1982) and the Union of Writers of Ukraine (1983). Then there were exhibitions in the library of the medical institute, where then Ivan Marchuk and others were exhibited, at the Institute of Semiconductors of Ukraine with the active support of the chairman Pavel Zagrebelny (1983.1986), in the Or gallery (director M. Volga), in the museum of folk architecture and life of the USSR (1988). The exhibition at the Kiev House of Trade Unions in 1990 was widely publicized.

Film

1988, the talented director and cameraman Leonid Anichkin created a unique film about the life and work of the artist “The Enchanted Wheel of Life” (cameraman A. Solopai, screenwriter V. Lysenko, Anatoly Cherchenko, composer Lazarevskaya-Dikareva Tatyana Leonidovna State Film and Photo Archive No. 11045), there are outstanding Ukrainian cultural figures have their say about the work of Olesya Semerni: Paul Zagrebel'nyi Yuri Pokalchuk, John Malkovich, Valery Raspberry (discoverer of talent Semerni), Nikolay Shcherbak Oksana Zabuzhko Valentina Lysenko Roxanne Gorbovets.

Kiev

In 1992, one of the most interesting collective presentations was held under the name “Our Roots and Sources”. The works of Vladimir Kabachenko (Odessa), Fedor Panchuk (Vinnitsa), Olesya Semerni (Nikolaev - then he lived in Voznesensk) and Anatoly Furlet (Khmelnitsky) harmoniously combined. It was a strange quartet that sang a Ukrainian folk song, so bright in color, meaningful in its national folklore foundation and graceful for its creation. In 1994, with a group of Kiev artists, they turned to the Culture Department of the Pechersk District State Administration with a proposal to turn Kostelnaya, one of the most beautiful streets of Old Kiev, into the Street of Arts. Having received support and examined non-residential premises, which were extremely neglected, they won the tender on a competitive basis and made repairs and design on their own. As a result, the "Cultural and Art Center on Kostelnaya" was created, with 7 art galleries and 8 creative workshops. With the Griffin Gallery, Oles Semernya begins his collaboration by exhibiting his works there. In the summer of 1996, Semerni’s works took part in the I International Art Festival, which was held in the capital's Ukrainian House. Among 52 domestic and foreign galleries, the exposition of the Griffin gallery with works by Semerny was recognized as the best - awarded the Grand Prix. At the same time, an invitation was received from Harvard University to an exhibition in the United States. Multi-colored birds flew to Harvard, who were already born in independent Ukraine. Among the works of eight artists from different parts of Ukraine (Professor Roman Shporlyuk, director of the Institute, had such a wish), there were paintings by Oles Semeni. 1996 works by the maestro surprised Americans (mainly of Ukrainian origin) except Harvard, even in New York (Ukraine’s Representation at the United Nations and the Ukrainian Institute of America (UIA), adjacent to the prestigious Fifth Avenue and the Metropolitan Museum of Art), in Washington (Ukrainian Embassy in the USA), Philadelphia (in the Ukrainian cultural center) ^[1] .

Collaboration with publishers

Since the 1990s, the artist has been collaborating with publishers. In 1991, for the publishing house Molod, he worked on the Sunflower magazine for primary school age ^[2] . After meeting with Ivan Malkovich, "illustrates books for his publishing house" A-ba-ba-ha-la-ma-ga "-" Oh you, Marku cat "(1993)," A candle made of snow ^[3] .

Sokyrians

At the beginning of the third millennium, Semenny again returns to Ukraine and by chance ^{[ how? ]} buys a house in Sokiryany on Bukovina. This hut painted and decorated with the hands of the artist became a happy haven for the artist who was forever restless. The artist gets acquainted with the artists of the Sokiryanshchina, in particular Valentina Yarova, participates in regional exhibitions, in particular on the Artist’s Day, and visits the regional center for the creation of children and youth. ^[4] . The works “Brotherhood”, “Christmas”, “Birthday”, “Welcome”, “Cossack Song”, “Grandfather Moldavan”, “Harvest”, “Mother Song” are created. In 2007, an exhibition was held in the Chernivtsi Regional Art Museum, during which 31 works from the work written over the past 20 years are presented. In February 2009, in Chisinau, a personal exhibition of the artist “Paleta Ucraineană a Moldovei - Ukrainian Palette of Moldova”, dedicated to the 15th anniversary of the Moldavian Charitable Foundation of Ukrainian Professional Artists and Folk Masters “Renaştere-Renaissance”, took place. ^[5] August - September 2011 - participation in the exhibition in Chisinau, to the Independence Day of Ukraine ” ^[6]

Browse Publications

• 2003 - The Ukrainian Culture magazine publishes articles by Ivan Malkovich, “Cossack Mamay of Ukrainian Painting” ^[7] and Anatoly Brus, “Awe Awaken” ^[8] .
• 2006 - on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the artist, an article by A. Yaremchuk “From Pure Origins” ^{[9] was} published.
• 2007 - I.F. Kitsul for the Chernivtsi Art Museum organizes the booklet "Seeds Oles Fedorovich" for an exhibition of the artist's works.
• 2008 - The Museum Lane magazine publishes a review by Nina Petrusova of Sokiryans on Bukovina: Oles Semernya ^[10] .
• 2011 - V. Rokachuk, article “Everyday in the Paintings of Alexander Semerni” is published on the website of Ivan Ogienko Kamianets-Podilsky National University by the senior scientific researcher of the Institute of Cultural Heritage of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova ^[11]

The last years of life

The artist is discovered ^{[ when?} oncological disease.

The last solo exhibition of his works took place in the summer of 2011 in the Kiev gallery "Griffin" ^[12] . For admirers of his talent, it was a holiday, because recently they operated on meters, and the disease did not recede. The artist worked until the end of his life in his Bessarabian hut in Sokiryany.

The grave of the artist

Above the grave of Olesya Semerny an eternal memory is a cross, made according to his own sketch.

After the artist’s death, a significant part of his paintings (more than 70) will become a subject of enjoyment for the wide human community. The works of Oles Semerny are stored in private collections in 26 countries, in particular Pavel Zagrebelny, Oles Honchar, Dmitry Pavlychko, Ivan Malkovich, Nikolai Volga and other famous figures of Ukrainian culture and in museums: the National Art Museum of Ukraine, the Museum of Folk Art of Ukraine, the Museum of Folk Life and architecture of Ukraine (Pirogovo, Kiev) and many others. The society of the Bukovinian city of Sokiryany is now founding the Oles Semerny Museum in the house where the artist lived and worked.

Here is how Oles Semernya speaks about his own work:

• Artists vidavnitsva “A-BA-BA-GA-LA-MA-GA” (Ukrainian)
• Nedospіvana Kobzareva pіsnya Olesya Semernі (Ukrainian)
• In the Kiev gallery "Griffin" show "Solar painting" (Russian)
• poetic zbіrka Lyudmili Malkovich "Svіchka zі snіgu" (Ukrainian)
• the book "Oh tee, cat Marku" (Ukrainian)
• “WATER OF HERB”, distributor “MALYARSTVO”, Vasil THE GREAT (Ukrainian)
• SEES SEAL - artist page (Ukrainian)

• Malkovich I. Kazak Mamay of Ukrainian painting (Ukrainian) = Kozak Mamay of Ukrainian painting: Semera Oles // Ukrainian culture: magazine. - 2003. - No. 10 . - S. 20 .
• Bar A. Thrill of the soul (Ukrainian) = Thrill of the soul // Ukrainian culture: magazine. - 2003. - No. 10 . - S. 20-21 .
• Yaremchuk A. Іz of pure prajerelles: to a certain artist Oles Semenny vipovnilosy 70 (Ukrainian) // Museum Bushes: magazine. - 2006. - No. 9 . - S. 48-49 .
• Petrusova N. Sokiryani on Bukovinі: Oles Semernya (Ukrainian) // Museum Link: magazine. - 2008. - No. 10 .