Valeri Izumrudov, artist
Russia, Moscow
Valeri Izumrudov, one of the most interesting and talented artists of the present-day Russia, had found his artistic credo at the very beginning of his career, and stayed faithful to it all his life.
It is not easy to define by one term the style of his art. By the source, he is a realist; but, while selecting the subjects from the real life, he renders them with such richness of colors and forms, that they surpass the bounds of reality, becoming rather symbols of the inner essence of the material world. His flower still lifes are painted with vibrant, thick, strong colors; brilliant patches of petals are in a perfect harmony with saturated, deep tones of the decorative clothes and gleaming crystal glass, bronze or polished wood. His spring landscapes are permeated with light and filled with air; they make you feel smells of thawing snow, patches of emerging soil and trees awakening for new life.
"I believe - says Izumrudov - that a real piece of art can only be created if three ingredients are in full harmony: perfect conception, perfect technique of painting, and deep emotional involvement with the subject of painting". And in his art he reaches this harmony.
During the long years of official "socialistic realism" in Russia not only any modern art was suppressed, but also pure beauty, if it did not serve some kind of utilitarian purposes. "Working people don't need roses, they need art reflecting their work", - was the motto. But Izumrudov, though expelled from the official exhibitions, went on with what fascinated him most: beauty, wherever it striked him, be it flowers, nature or women's body. And this consistency brought it's fruits. In our days, when all around the world the interest in modernistic art, which seems to be in a dead end, is fading, Izumrudov found himself at the leading edge of a new renaissance, resorting to the beauty of the world as a source of inspiration.
His art is in no way an imitation of the past. He had merged the unsurpassed skill of the old masters (now almost forgotten) in rendering forms and textures with impressionist's mastery of light, air and colors to create his own unique style. And now his paintings make impression of a fresh wind, bringing back to the world of art joy, elegance and beauty.
A. Rostovsky, Art writer
The Creative Biography
Valeri Izumrudov was born in 1945. He graduated from a prestigious Surikov Institute of Art, which gave Russia many of it's most famous artists. He is a member of the Artist's League of Russia and a participant of many Moscow (since"perestroika") and foreign exhibitions, including Paris salon/anction of 1990 and exhibition "Five Russian Artists" in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1992. His paintings are receiving in Europe more and more attention and recognition.
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