Levanidov, Valery Ivanovich

Valery Ivanovich Levanidov was born in 1905 in Riga in the family of Ivan Nikolaevich Levanidov and Anna Moiseevna Levanidova. Soon the family moved to Gorokhovets , where the artist’s childhood passed.

Levanidov received his art education at the Nizhny Novgorod Art and Industrial College, where in 1923-1927 he studied under A.V. Fonvizin . In 1930 he graduated from VKhUTEIN , where he studied with S. V. Gerasimov , K. N. Istomin , A. A. Osmerkin ^[1] .

The artist’s picturesque concept was formed in the 1930s. In his works, Levanidov relied on a true transfer of nature, clarity and simplicity of compositional solutions, and sincerity of author's intonation. The artist gravitated to tonal painting, to soft and lyrical colors. He was attracted by the art of halftones, the poetics of colorful nuances ^[2] .

The most significant achievements of Levanidov are related to the landscape genre. In a number of works of the 1930s, tonal painting techniques were combined with decorative writing techniques. Sometimes they introduced watercolors into mixed media as one of the components.

During World War II, Valery Levanidov was a miner ^[3] . Only a few sketches of this era have survived - the species of the destroyed Smolensk. The artist began active creative work only after the end of the war.

In the painting of Levanidov of the 1950s, a tendency to reduce color complexity to decorative generalization begins to be seen. The works of this period are characterized by lighting effects, outspoken decorativeism, and the poetics of pictorial-plastic generalizations.

In the 1970s, the artist created software for this new style of work - a thematic picture with a military plot. His paintings on military-patriotic themes were a sincere tribute to the artist-veteran of memory of the past.

The artist died in Moscow in 1983. The vast majority of his works were first made publicly available for trial in a posthumous solo exhibition organized by the RSFSR a year after his death in 1984 ^[4] . An article for the catalog of Levanidov’s personal exhibition was written by Stanislav Ivanitsky, who at that time was the head of the Soviet art department of the State Tretyakov Gallery ^[5] .

During the exhibition, representatives of many of the largest state art collections in the country expressed a desire to have the artist in their museums, including the Tretyakov Gallery, the State Historical Museum, the Gorky (now Nizhny Novgorod) State Art Museum, the Oryol Museum of Fine Arts, the Tula Museum of Fine Arts, Vladimir -Suzdal Museum-Reserve and many others. To date, his works are in more than 20 museums in Russia, including the State Russian Museum of St. Petersburg, Saratov State Art Museum. A.N. Radishchev, the State Institution of Culture of the Museum Association Museum of the History of Moscow, as well as in private collections in Russia and abroad ^{[6] [7]} .

He began to participate in exhibitions since 1934. In 1939, the artist held his first solo exhibition in Moscow ^[8] .

• 1936 - Moscow - Exhibition-review of works by young artists (painting, graphics, sculpture).
• 1939 - Moscow - Exhibition of easel artists MOSSH.
• 1940 - Moscow - Seventh exhibition of the Union of Moscow Artists (graphics, watercolor, drawing).
• 1957 - Moscow - Exhibition "Moscow Socialist in the Works of Moscow Artists".
• 1986 - Moscow - Persian CX RSFSR.
• 1992 - Moscow - the 20-30s. MOSH, CHA.
• 2017 - Moscow - Krylatsky ornament ^[9]

Museums in the collection of which the artist's works are located:

• State Russian Museum
• State Historical Museum
• Museum Association "Museum of Moscow"
• State Museum of Defense of Moscow
• Nizhny Novgorod State Art Museum (Gorky. A bridge across the Oka River. 1933; Fish Mill 1935; An old man in a hat. 1938. 41x33.5)
• Voronezh Regional Art Museum named after I.N. Kramskoy (Cabin in the mountains. 1936)
• Smolensk State Museum-Reserve
• Saratov Art Museum named after A.N. Radishchev
• Ivanovo Regional Art Museum (Self-portrait. 1939. Kh.M. 51x41)
• National Gallery of the Republic of Komi (Blue distance. 1936. Kh.M. 44x54)
• Kyrgyz National Museum of Fine Arts Gapara Aitieva (Bouquet of flowers. 1945. Kh.M. 60x50)
• Vladimir-Suzdal Museum-Reserve (Old Man in a Fur Coat. 1938. 43.5x38.5)
• Rybinsk State Historical, Architectural and Art Museum-Reserve (City landscape. Watercolor. 1937)
• Krasnodar Regional Art Museum named after F. A. Kovalenko
• Belgorod State Art Museum (Portrait of a miner. 1934; Portrait of M.P. Gorbunkov. 1937)
• Tula Regional Art Museum (Portrait of a father. 1936; Flowers. 1940; Mozhaysk. Anti-aircraft installations. 1943)
• Orlovsky Museum of Fine Arts
• Arkhangelsk Museum of Fine Arts
• Kurgan Regional Art Museum

• Page on the NEB website