Boris Alexandrowich Spornikov
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Biography Moscow, historical picture, Socialism, oil painting, a landscape, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Podol, Lavra, battle-painting realism, USSR time, Communism, the communist
Boris Alexandrowich Spornikov was born at August 3, 1930. Graduated from Kiev State Fine Arts Institute in 1975. In July 1941 being a boy in the youth camp he first saw the album with the fine art drawings, and this moment was a critical turn point in his future career. Boris gained the strong wish to draw and paint. He lived in Kiev during its occupation by Nazi forces, where death was a real and immediate thing everywhere. He and his mother were forced to leave Ukraine for Germany, but by some wonder they escaped the train.
After the war, a schoolteacher of mathematics, who was also the professional painter, allowed Boris to study fine arts. By this way, the boy was accepted to the Republican secondary fine art school… While studying in 9th form, Boris painted his first serious picture of historical motif “The Kiev defense against Tatars”. Late fine art academic, S.O. Grygoriev, after seeing this painting, helped Boris with attending to the Kiev Fine Art Institute (1952). Spornikov happened to study in the studio of the well-known Ukrainian master K.D. Trokhimenko. Under his supervision, Spornikov painted the large canvas of O. Parkhomenko (Soviet supreme governmental member). Another painting, “Arsenal rebel members” was a diploma project of Boris. Then he got to the position of teacher in fine art school in Dnepropetrovsk where he teaches the painting of social realism. His serious paintings of that time: “The heroes of Tripillya” and “The first seeds of the Commune”, made triumph at Republican and Soviet exhibitions.
In 1958 Boris Spornikov moved to Omsk (South Siberia). During 4 years, on the basis of the works he produced, he achieved the membership in the Council of Artists of Soviet Union. So called, “Siberian” period in Spornikov’s life now completes the worthy part in his paintings. Even after returning to Kiev in 1969, he traveled to Siberia for drawing etudes every year. Many of his works were gifted to the city of Salekhard, to the military garrison in Omsk. Coming back to Kiev started the new period in Spornikov’s work. The realization of his former Siberia projects in Kiev are: “Urengoy. Going landed.”, “Northern frontier”, “Birds are coming”, “Deer- keepers’ feast”, “Trans- polar”, “Portrait of the forester I. Medvedkin”.
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Favourite themes of the master artist Ukraine Drawing,full-length portrait woodland scenery, flowers still life, oil painting on canvas
Spornikov shows himself as the multi- genre artist. Most of the works are landscapes (Northern, Kiev, Moscow, Carpathian themes) but with time, he realizes himself as the master of composition portrait. His main themes are: World War II (“The Banner of the Victory – to Moscow” (1985), “That Day of Victory”(1985), “Death of the Commissar”(1986), “Group portrait of the members of Slovak National Rebellion”(1988 – 89); Russian spirituality (“Dream”(1983) – diptych, “Solzhenitzyn”, “Taras Shevchenko”(1988), “Do not make the Evil…Rabindranat Thagor”(1987 – 89), “Peredvizhniki”(1990). Realistic paintings play an important role in his creativity. He shows realism in all its sides reflecting his thoughts and reality on the canvas.
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Exhibitions Leningrad, military events, Brezhnev, a factory, collectivization,historical picture landscape, factory, industrial, picture of relic Kiev socialistic realism, buy art in less
Last exhibitions represented works of Boris Spornikov: Socialism, oil painting,
Soviet exhibition of diploma works by graduates of Fine Art institutes. Moscow 1957.
Regional fine art exhibition devoted to 40th anniversary of Comsomol. Dnepropetrovsk 1958.
Soviet fine art exhibition devoted to 40th anniversary of Comsomol. Moscow1958.
Zonal exhibition of young artists in Omsk 1959.
Republican fine art exhibition of Russia Soviet Republic. Moscow 1960.
Personal exhibition. Omsk 1960.
Group mobile exhibition tour across Omsk region. 1960.
Zonal fine art exhibition “Siberia socialistic” Novosibirsk 1964.
Zonal fine art exhibition “Siberia socialistic” Omsk 1965.
Jubileum zonal fine art exhibition “Siberia socialistic” Omsk 1967.
Personal exhibition. Salekhard 1969.
Republican fine art exhibition of Ukrainian painters devoted to 100th Lenin’s birth. Kiev. 1970.
Republican fine art exhibition devoted to 30th anniversary of Ukraine’s deliverance from Nazi occupation. Kiev. 1974.
Republican fine art exhibition devoted to 30th anniversary of Victory in WWII. Kiev. 1975.
Report exhibition of the Soviet artist group in White Sea basin “Artist – to the Northern fleet.” Jakutsk. 1975.
Republican fine art exhibition “Glory to the Labor!” devoted to 25th congress of the Communist Party of USSR and the Communist Party of Ukraine. Kiev. 1976.
Report exhibition of the Soviet artist group in White Sea basin. Arkhangelsk. 1976.
Republican fine art exhibition. Kiev. 1977.
Republican fine art exhibition devoted to 100th anniversary of F.E. Dzerzhinsky. Kiev. 1977.
Republican fine art exhibition “Always ready”. Kiev.1977.
Republican fine art exhibition devoted to 60th anniversary of frontier troops of USSR. Kiev. 1978.
Republican fine art exhibitions (Kiev. 1977-89).
Soviet fine art exhibitions (Moscow 1981 – 1985).
Exhibitions abroad Ukraine. Countries, where the paintings were exhibited or where his works are currently located: Japan (1976 – 78) United Kingdom (1992 – 94) Germany (1985) South Korea (1992)
France (1985 – 94) Canada (1986 – 88) Turkey (1980) Poland (1980)
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Realism
Realist art adopts the approach of portraying subjects in as straightforward manner as possible, without idealizing them and without following the rules of formal theory. Realism first appeared in art of the 18th century, however, the great Realist era was the mid-19th century, as artists became disillusioned with the Salon system and the influence of the Academies.
What kind of differences are there between the classical and the realistic painting?
1) Figuratively, the classical picture is music based on notation; the realistic Painting is music without notation knowledge.
2)Technique. Everything in the classical Painting is done stage by stage in accordance with laws which were not invented by the author. The realistic Painting is made in one layer, "alla prima." There can be several layers but only because the author does not have time to finish the picture "in the wet".
3) Plot. In the classical Painting the plot is constructed in accordance with the classical composition laws. The realistic Painting school does borrow something from the classical school but there is no composition laws as such: there are as many laws as there are realistic artists.
The Socialist Realism, an ideology enforced by the Soviet state as the official standard for art, literature etc., was defined in 1934 at the First All-Union Congress of Soviet writers. It was based on the principle that the arts should glorify political and social ideals of communism. Every artist in USSR had to join the "Union of Soviet Artists", which was controlled by the state. The paintings had to be idealisations of political leaders and communistic ideas.
