Famous Russian artists of the 21st century. Artists of modern painting

The dominant trend of the 20th century was abstractionism - the replacement of real objects in a drawing with geometric shapes and color combinations. One of the founders of this trend was the Russian artist Wassily Kandinsky (1866-1944). His works were a reflection of the artist's thoughts and feelings - colorful and messy. Most of Kandinsky’s works – “Oscillation”, “Compositions”, “East” and “Moscow” – were included in the golden fund of world abstract art.

Modern abstract artists

Today, the American painter Christopher Wool (born 1955) is considered one of the most popular. He creates monochrome canvases from intersecting ones, as well as depicting large black letters on a white background.

The young but already quite famous Spanish artist Fernando Vicente (born 1963) imitates his great compatriot Pablo Picasso in some works. One of his sensational series of paintings is dedicated to the female body with anatomical features, the other - to geographical maps depicting continents in the form of animal figures. The artist works in Madrid and regularly publishes his illustrations in the El Pais newspaper.

Realism on canvases

Despite the rapid development of abstract genres of fine art, realism remains popular both in the 20th and 21st centuries. Among contemporary Russian artists, the most famous representative of realism is Alexander Shilov (born 1943). His main genre is portrait, a reflection of a person and his individuality. For his contribution to the development of Russian art, Shilov received many awards, including the Order of Merit for the Fatherland, the Order of Honor and the Order of Alexander Nevsky.

No less brilliant Russian realist artist is Ilya Glazunov (born 1930). The monumental works of this painter reflect historical scenes, sketches from the life of the city, and also serve as illustrations for famous works of Russian literature.

Expressionism in the art of painting

American reality is reflected in his works by artist and photographer Richard Prince (b. 1949). His unique style combines the traditions of pop art and expressionism. The themes of Prince's works are cowboys, biker gangs, celebrities - everything that is close and understandable to a typical American.

One of the most famous contemporary artists of the East is the Chinese painter Zeng Fanzhi (born 1964). His works are full of expression, grotesque and emotional expressiveness. The most famous series of paintings by the artist: Hospital Series and Mask Series. His interpretation of The Last Supper was sold at Sotheby's for $23.3 million.

Contemporary art can be admired, criticized, or simply misunderstood. Nevertheless, it is unique, original and is a “mirror” of our time.

Related article

The “Golden Age” of Russian painting is, of course, the 19th century. At that time, a whole galaxy of talented masters appeared. The “Silver Age” - the turn of the 19th - 20th centuries - gave Russia many wonderful artists. It was then that works were created that can rightfully be called the best examples of Russian painting.

Masterpieces of romantic painting

The first half of the 19th century is a period of romanticism in painting, marked by the flowering of the art of portraiture. The best examples of romantic portraiture include “The Girl in a Poppy Wreath” by Orest Kiprensky, “The Lacemaker” and “Portrait of the Son of Arseny” by Vasily Tropinin, as well as two dissimilar portraits of Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin created by Kiprensky and Tropinin. “The Horsewoman” by Karl Bryullov occupies a special place in the gallery of portraits of the romantic period. Here the characters are shown in movement rather than in traditional static poses. The first true masterpiece of Russian historical painting, the painting “The Last Day of Pompeii,” belongs to the brush of Karl Bryullov.

Famous paintings of the Wanderers

The work of the Itinerants opens a new era in the history of Russian painting. They create brilliant realistic paintings of various genres. Vasily Perov becomes one of the largest representatives of the everyday genre. His famous “Troika” leaves a sad and at the same time touching impression. The historical one is now developing on national material. Among her best examples are “The Morning of the Streltsy Execution” and “Boyaryna Morozova” by Vasily Surikov, “Ivan the Terrible and His Son Ivan” by Ilya Repin.

The landscapes of the Itinerants captivate with their beauty. Pictures of simple Russian nature acquire newness and special charm under their brush. The first truly national Russian landscape was Alexey Savrasov’s painting “The Rooks Have Arrived.” Savrasov's traditions are continued by his student Isaac Levitan. His numerous lyrical landscapes are imbued with real poetry, including “March”, “Spring. Big Water", "Golden Autumn".

Viktor Vasnetsov creates the world of Russian fairy tales and epics in his work. Perhaps there is no person in our country who is not familiar with his wonderful works “Alyonushka”, “Ivan Tsarevich on the Gray Wolf”, “Bogatyrs”.

The best works of artists of the “Silver Age”

Mikhail Aleksandrovich Vrubel is rightfully considered the largest representative of Russian symbolism. The most famous and, perhaps, of his works is the fabulously beautiful “Swan Princess”. Among the best examples of Russian painting are the wonderful, dissimilar images created by representatives of the artistic association “World of Art” - “Lady in Blue” by Konstantin Somov, “Merchant’s Wife at Tea” by Boris Kustodiev, “For” by Zinaida Serebryakova. Boris Kustodiev unfolds delightful, bright and colorful pictures of Russian holidays on his canvases “Maslenitsa” and “Trinity Day”.

Russian painting is a whole world full of vivid images, poetic beauty and constant discoveries. And, of course, the list of the best examples of Russian painting is far from exhausted by these works.

Video on the topic

The most thankless task is evaluating and forming ratings in art. It is impossible to compare Mendelssohn's waltz and the aria "Ave Maria", the paintings "Mona Lisa" and "Black Square", "The Tale of Igor's Host" and Goethe's poems. All these beautiful, ingenious creations of man just need to be looked at, listened to and treasured.

Instructions

"The Ninth Wave" The painting is in the State Russian Museum in St. Petersburg. On a canvas measuring 221x332 cm, the great Russian Ivan Aivazovsky in 1850 depicted the struggle against the elements of four sailors who suffered. Huge blue-green waves, illuminated by the setting sun, are about to overwhelm the fragment of the mast - the last support of the unfortunate people. Aivazovsky wrote more than six thousand works, and all of them were recognized during the author's lifetime. The artist created quickly. One of his famous paintings was painted during a lesson at an art school for students.

The painting “Mona Lisa” (“La Gioconda”) is located in Paris in the Louvre, painted by the great artist Leonardo da Vinci in 1505. The whole world learned about it after the painting was stolen by a museum employee in 1911. Art historians have established the name of the woman depicted in the famous painting. She turned out to be the wife of a merchant from Florence, Lisa Gherardini. Her mysterious smile became the theme of many new works, philosophical reflections and debates.

The painting “Black Square” by Kazimir Malevich, created in 1915, still causes ambiguous attitudes, disputes and various conclusions. Everyone can take a white sheet and

Levitan, Shishkin, Aivazovsky and many other names are familiar to every educated person in our country and abroad. This is our pride. There are many talented artists today. It’s just that their names are not yet so widely known to everyone.
Bright Side collected 10 contemporary Russian artists (we are sure there are many more) who will undoubtedly write their name in the classics of painting of the 21st century. Find out about them today.

Alexey Chernigin

Most of Alexey Chernigin's oil paintings on canvas capture beauty, romance and moments of true feelings. Alexey Chernigin inherited his talent and passion for art from his father, the famous Russian artist Alexander Chernigin. Every year they organize a joint exhibition in their native Nizhny Novgorod.

Konstantin Lupanov






A young and incredibly talented artist from Krasnodar calls his painting “fun, irresponsible daub.” Konstantin Lupanov writes what he loves. The main characters of his paintings are friends, acquaintances, relatives and his beloved cat Philip. The simpler the plot, the artist says, the more truthful the picture turns out.

Stanislav Plutenko

Stanislav Plutenko’s creative motto: “See the unusual and do the unusual.” The Moscow artist works in a unique technique of mixing tempera, acrylic, watercolor and the finest AirBrash glaze. Stanislav Plutenko is included in the catalog of 1000 surrealists of all times and peoples.

Nikolay Blokhin

Discover a modern Russian artist who, without a doubt, centuries later will stand on a par with the world classics of painting. Nikolai Blokhin is known primarily as a portrait painter, although he also paints landscapes, still lifes, and genre paintings. But it is in the portrait that one of the most important aspects of his talent is most clearly demonstrated.

Dmitry Annenkov

Looking at the hyper-realistic still lifes of this Russian artist, you just want to reach out and take from the canvas or touch what is drawn there. They are so alive and with soul. Artist Dmitry Annenkov lives in Moscow and works in different genres. And he is extremely talented in everything.

Vasily Shulzhenko

The work of artist Vasily Shulzhenko leaves no one indifferent. He is either loved or hated, praised for his understanding of the Russian soul and accused of hating it. His paintings depict harsh Russia, without cuts and grotesque comparisons, alcohol, debauchery and stagnation.

Arush Votsmush

Under the pseudonym Arush Votsmush hides the most talented artist from Sevastopol, Alexander Shumtsov. “There is a word called “conflict”: when you see something amazing that makes your inner wheels turn in the right direction. A good conflict, “with goosebumps” - it’s interesting. And goosebumps can come from anything: from cold water, from a holiday, from the fact that you suddenly felt something like in childhood - when you were surprised for the first time and began to play inside you... I’m not trying to prove anything to anyone with my works. First of all, I enjoy it. This is a pure drug of creativity. Or a clean life - without doping. Just a miracle."

Alexander Vinogradov and Vladimir Dubossarsky

Vinogradov and Dubossarsky are the main hooligans and scolders of modern Russian painting. The creative duo formed in the mid-90s of the twentieth century. And today he has already gained worldwide fame. It is no coincidence that the writer Viktor Pelevin designed one of his novels with illustrations from ready-made works by Dubossarsky and Vinogradov.

Mikhail Golubev

Young Russian artist Mikhail Golubev lives and works in St. Petersburg. His works are thought-paintings, fantasy-paintings and philosophical reflections. A very interesting artist with his own, but very familiar to many, view of this world.

Sergey Marshennikov

Major international auctions are increasingly including contemporary Russian artists in their auctions of post-war and contemporary art. In February 2007, Sotheby’s held the first and almost sensational specialized auction of Russian contemporary art, which brought 22 auction records. “Artguide” decided to find out which of our contemporary artists collected the largest sums at international auctions and, having compiled the top 10 most expensive living Russian artists based on the results of auction sales, discovered some interesting patterns. All sales prices are based on auction house data and include buyer's premium.

Alexander Vinogradov and Vladimir Dubossarsky. Night fitness. Fragment. Courtesy authors (www.dubossarskyvinogradov.com)

Of course, there could be no doubt about who exactly became the leader of the auction race: Ilya Kabakov’s grandiose “Beetle”, sold in February 2008 at Phillips de Pury for almost £3 million, is probably remembered by everyone who is interested in contemporary art. A funny children's rhyme, the text of which is written on a wooden panel with a beetle, even acquired a thoughtful intonation in the art historical and market interpretation: “My beetle breaks out, jumps, chirps, it doesn’t want to get into my collection” - this metaphorically means the passion of a collector of modern art, for this same beetle bargaining. (The verse quoted by Kabakov, written by the architect A. Maslennikova, an amateur poet from Voronezh, was published in the children’s collection of poems, rhymes and riddles “Between Summer and Winter”, published in 1976 by the publishing house “Children’s Literature” - and Kabakov illustrated this book True, that beetle was not in his black and white illustrations).

It should be added that if we were not making the top 10 most expensive living artists, but the top 10 of their most expensive works, then Kabakov’s paintings would take the first three places on this list. That is, the three most expensive works of a living Russian artist belong to him - in addition to “Beetle”, these are “Luxury Room” 1981 (Phillips de Pury, London, June 21, 2007, £2.036 million) and “Vacation No. 10” 1987 (Phillips de Pury London, 14 April 2011, £1.497 million). On top of that, the generous Kabakov “gave” another record to the Vienna auction Dorotheum - a year ago, on November 24, 2011, the painting “At the University” went there for €754.8 thousand, becoming the most expensive work of contemporary art ever sold at this auction.

The silver medalist will probably also be easily named by many - this is Eric Bulatov, whose canvas “Glory to the CPSU” was sold for a record amount for the artist at the same Phillips de Pury auction as Kabakov’s “Beetle.”

But the third place of the nonconformist Evgeny Chubarov, whose late work “Untitled” went to Phillips de Pury for £720 thousand in June 2007, could be called a surprise, if not for the fact that a few months earlier, in February the same year, Chubarov had already created a sensation at Sotheby's in London, at a specialized auction of Russian contemporary art, where his work with the same title (or rather, without it) was sold for £288 thousand (with an upper estimate of £60 thousand), not only beating the supposed top lot of that auction, Bulatov’s painting “Revolution - Perestroika” (sale price £198 thousand), but also becoming the most expensive work of a living Russian artist at that time. By the way, here it is, the irony of currency exchange rate fluctuations: in November 2000, Grisha Bruskin’s polyptych was sold in New York for $424 thousand, and then in pounds sterling it was £296.7 thousand, and in February 2007, when it was installed Chubarov’s first record is already only £216.6 thousand.

Works by fourth place winners Vitaly Komar and Alexander Melamid are frequent and quite successful lots at Western auctions, although their estimates rarely exceed £100 thousand. The duo’s second most expensive work is “The Yalta Conference. The Judgment of Paris" was sold at Macdougall's auction in 2007 for £184.4 thousand. But it should be taken into account, of course, that the painting that brought them fourth place belongs to fairly early works that rarely appear at auction and that it was exhibited in 1976 at the first (and very high-profile) foreign exhibition of Komar and Melamid at the Ronald Feldman Gallery in New York.

Following Komar and Melamid, Oleg Vasiliev and Semyon Faibisovich consistently hold a high bar at auctions. Vasiliev was third at that extraordinarily successful 2008 Phillips de Pury auction, which brought records to Ilya Kabakov and Erik Bulatov, and Faibisovich was fourth. Then Vasiliev’s painting “Variation on the theme of the cover of the magazine “Ogonyok”” from 1980 was sold for ₤356 thousand with an estimate of ₤120 thousand, and “Another look at the Black Sea” by Faibisovich from 1986 was sold for £300.5 thousand with an estimate of ₤120 thousand. Estimate £60-80 thousand Works by both artists often fetch six-figure sums at auction.

True, it was not the record-breaking “Soldiers” that brought Faibisovich fame at auction, but the painting “Beauty,” sold at Sotheby’s on March 12, 2008 - this was the auction house’s second auction of contemporary Russian art, not counting the Moscow auction in 1988. The painting (its other name is “The First of May”) then went for £264 thousand with an estimate of £60-80 thousand; a real battle broke out between buyers for it. Another painting by Faibisovich “On Moskovskaya Street” at that auction exceeded the estimate twice and was sold for £126 thousand. We add that, according to the Artprice portal, Semyon Faibisovich is the only Russian artist included in the top 500 best-selling 2011-2012.

About the same can be said about Oleg Tselkov, who occupies eighth place in the top 10. Already half a century ago, he found his style and theme, a recognizable and authoritative artist, he regularly supplies auctions with his fluorescent round faces, which have continued success. The second most expensive painting by Tselkov, “Five Faces,” was sold in June 2007 at MacDougall’s for £223.1 thousand, the third, “Two with Beetles,” was sold in November of the same year at the same auction (MacDougall’s always puts up for auction several Tselkovs of different price range) for £202.4 thousand.

Grisha Bruskin has played a special role in the auction history of Russian contemporary art since 1988, with the Moscow Sotheby's auction entitled Russian Avant-Garde and Soviet Contemporary Art, where his “Fundamental Lexicon” was sold for a sensational £220 thousand, 12 times higher estimate. About the same thing, and maybe even more sensational, happened with the polyptych “Logia. Part I” in 2000 at Christie’s in New York: the polyptych went for $424 thousand, exceeding the upper estimate by 21 (!) times - this alone can be considered a kind of record. Most likely, this extraordinary purchase is due not least to the significance of Bruskin’s name as the hero of the legendary Moscow Sotheby’s auction, because no other auction sales of Bruskin even come close to these amounts.

The price of Oscar Rabin does not fluctuate, but is steadily and very noticeably growing, especially for works of the Soviet period - all the most expensive works of this master sold at auction were painted in the late 1950s - early 1970s. These are (in addition to his record-breaking "Socialist City") "Baths (Smell the Cologne "Moscow", 1966, Sotheby's, New York, April 17, 2007, $336 thousand) and "Violin in the Graveyard" (1969, Macdougall's, London, November 27 2006, £168.46).

The top ten are closed by representatives of the younger generation - Alexander Vinogradov and Vladimir Dubossarsky, whose most expensive paintings were sold at Phillips de Pury (the second most expensive is “The Last Butterfly”, 1997, Phillips de Pury, New York, $181 thousand). These artists, in general, continue a trend that is quite clearly noticeable in the ranking of the most expensive paintings by living artists. We’ll talk about it a little lower, but for now here’s, finally, a list of the most expensive works of living Russian artists.


Top 10 works by living Russian artists

1. Ilya Kabakov (b. 1933). Bug. 1982. Wood, enamel. 226.5 x 148.5. Phillips de Pury & Company auction, London, February 28, 2008. Estimate £1.2-1.8 million. Sale price £2.93 million.

2. Erik Bulatov (b. 1933). Glory to the CPSU. 1975. Oil on canvas. 229.5 x 229. Phillips de Pury & Company auction, London, February 28, 2008. Estimate £500-700 thousand. Sale price £1.084 million.

3. Evgeny Chubarov (b. 1934). Untitled. 1994. Oil on canvas. 300 x 200. Phillips de Pury & Company auction, London, June 22, 2007. Estimate £100-150 thousand. Sale price £720 thousand.

4. Vitaly Komar (b. 1943) and Alexander Melamid (b. 1945). Meeting between Solzhenitsyn and Bell at Rostropovich's dacha. 1972. Oil on canvas, collage, gold foil. 175 x 120. Phillips de Pury & Company auction, London, April 23, 2010. Estimate £100-150 thousand. Sale price £657.25 thousand.

5. Oleg Vasiliev (b. 1931). Before sunset. 1990. Oil on canvas. 210 x 165. Sotheby’s auction, London, March 12, 2008. Estimate £200-300 thousand. Sale price £468.5 thousand.

6. Semyon Faibisovich (b. 1949). Soldiers. From the series “Stations”. 1989. Oil on canvas. 285.4 x 190.5. Phillips de Pury & Company auction, London, October 13, 2007. Estimate £40-60 thousand. Sale price £311.2 thousand.

8. Oleg Tselkov (b. 1934). Boy with balloons. Canvas, oil. 103.5 x 68.5. MacDougall's auction, London, November 28, 2008. Estimate £200-300 thousand. Sale price £238.4 thousand.

9. Oscar Rabin (b. 1928). City and Moon (Socialist City). 1959. Oil on canvas. 90 x 109. Sotheby’s auction, New York, April 15, 2008. Estimate $120-160 thousand. Sale price $337 thousand (£171.4 at the dollar to pound sterling exchange rate as of April 2008).

10. Alexander Vinogradov (b. 1963) and Vladimir Dubossarsky (b. 1964). Night training. 2004. Oil on canvas. 194.9 x 294.3. Phillips de Pury & Company auction, London, June 22, 2007. Estimate £15-20 thousand. Sale price £132 thousand.

It is known that auction prices are an irrational thing and one cannot judge by them the true role and significance of the artist in the artistic process. But from them and from the top lots one can roughly judge collector’s preferences. What are they? You don't need to be an expert to answer this question. They are obvious. Firstly, all the artists (except perhaps Alexander Vinogradov and Vladimir Dubossarsky) are “living classics” in years, and very respectable ones at that. Secondly, for almost each of them the records were set not by works of recent years, but by much earlier ones, that is, the pattern “the older, the better” is relevant here too. Thirdly, without exception, all works from the top 10 are easel paintings. Fourthly, these are all large and very large paintings. The only ones that can be considered more or less “standard” in this regard are “The City and the Moon” by Oscar Rabin and “The Boy with Balloons” by Oleg Tselkov; all the others greatly exceed human height in height (not even in width). Finally, for all these artists, the theme of the Soviet (in particular, nonconformist) past is in one way or another relevant, in many cases accentuated in their works. It seems that our collectors are experiencing acute nostalgia for this very Soviet past (it is well known that it is Russian collectors who buy Russian art in the West).

Younger than the other leaders of auction sales, Alexander Vinogradov and Vladimir Dubossarsky are somewhat stubbornly trying to break out of the dozens of harsh nonconformists, but this is only at first glance. In fact, if you imagine which of the generations following Kabakov, Bulatov, Rabin, Vasiliev, Tselkov can best meet the above criteria for purchase (large-sized easel paintings, rehashes of Soviet genres, motifs and stylistics), then this will probably turn out to be Vinogradov and Dubossarsky, worthy heirs of the masters of previous decades. At least judging by auction sales.

Many people have a rather contradictory attitude towards contemporary art, so everything created after the 19th century causes a certain skepticism - the majority still gravitate towards more classical forms than Malevich’s “Black Square” and complex installations. However, modern oil painting is not always paint spilled onto the canvas; it can inherit the traditions of academic painting, and at the same time retain the atmosphere of the 21st century.

Modern oil painting

Among the huge number of contemporary artists, there are many truly talented authors who paint oil paintings, whose paintings delight even harsh critics. We have selected ten noteworthy names whose works should not leave viewers indifferent.

Valentin Gubarev

Valentin Gubarev is an artist with a strong personality and an unusual vision of the world.

Paradoxically, he chooses the themes, plots and images of his works in a rather banal way, from everyday life. They do not look like masterpieces of Russian painting, but they captivate with their charming simplicity.

The strength of these paintings lies in the fact that after viewing all the subjects painted in oil on them, they look like some old acquaintances, guys from our yard. like this oil painting you can look at it indefinitely, penetrating into this strange but very curious world.

The characters in Gubarev’s paintings are familiar to everyone: it’s either us or our neighbors, but, in general, this is our past and present society, seen through the lens of healthy humor, some irony, nostalgia for fun times.

Jeremy Mann

In his creative work, Mann strives to depict his city, San Francisco, and imbue these paintings with drama, mood and character.

It brings a unique atmosphere and dynamics to the city's surroundings. Many of the artist's works are inspired by rain and wet pavement reflecting street lights and neon signs.

Mann paints his oil paintings on wood panels using a variety of techniques: staining the surfaces with stains, erasing the paint with a solvent, applying sweeping ink strokes to the canvas and always providing his painting with harmonious and colorful shades.

Gerhard Gluck

Cartoonist Gerhard Gluck is perhaps the most brilliant and skillful middle-class satirist in Germany. The artist’s style has already become recognizable - Gluck’s caricatures and other works are known throughout Germany and beyond. His characters are stocky Europeans, with faces without a pronounced chin. They are all depicted in stories of their daily lives.

“This was the first time the Brochards ordered something online.”

"Everyday Gioconda"

Before becoming an artist, Gluck worked as a school art teacher. One day one of his friends suggested that he send sketches to a couple of newspapers. As a result, Gluck received a positive response from one of them, quit his job at school and continued his activities exclusively as a cartoonist.

“Andre would have loved to feed the fish, but he was afraid of the consequences.”

Although all of Gluck’s caricatures reveal various aspects of human nature, and sometimes not the most positive ones, this funny oil painting cannot be called evil.

Laurent Parselier

Laurent Parselier's obvious talent was evident during his studies at the School of Art, after the publication of several of his art albums under the title "Strange World".

His popularity began to spread even further when he won a street painting competition. Fans fell in love with him for his unique style and relaxed manner of painting in oils.

Laurent's works combine complex color compositions and enormous amounts of light. Parselier prefers to paint his paintings in a realistic manner, because in this way, according to him, everyone can guess what kind of place is depicted in the picture.

Kevin Sloan

Kevin Sloan is an American artist whose oil painting can be called modern realism. Kevin himself explains it as a reality with a catch.

The artist’s paintings will truly take you to some other, magical world. The author loves to use symbolism, poetic metaphors and allegories in his paintings, trying to convey the wonders of the natural world and its abundance.

The artist has been painting in oils since high school, and still, 37 years later, it remains his main passion.

Kevin's favorite thing is to draw animals. As he says, they give him more freedom of choice in who and how to paint than in the case of people, and allow him to better focus on the story that he is putting into the basis of the picture.

Richard Estes

Initially, Estes was interested in traditional academic painting, but then he began to paint in the genre of photorealism, because he always wanted to learn how to depict reality on canvas as fully as possible. However, in the artist’s paintings, reality appears idealized, along with perfect forms, clear lines and precise composition.

Estes's favorite subject was city landscapes, when you see them, you begin to doubt whether this is really a painting and not a photograph.

Modern paintings in this genre have become very popular among connoisseurs of 21st century painting.

Oil painting: landscapes and still lifes

In modern painting, in addition to portraits, such genres as landscape and still life are especially popular. We invite you to pay attention to the following names of contemporary artists who create oil paintings in these genres.

Dmitry Annenkov

Dmitry Annenkov seems to be able to draw any subject in such a way that the viewer himself will look at it with different eyes. Not a single detail is hidden from the keen eye of this Russian artist.

He often paints the simplest and most banal, everyday and antique objects, giving each of them its own unique character - as if a soul appears in them. At the same time, they look so alive and realistic that you want to reach out and take them out of the picture. Dmitry is a true master of such a genre of painting as still life.

Now Dmitry is collaborating with various galleries around the world, including from countries such as the USA, Norway and France.

Justina Kopanya

A Polish artist who paints oil paintings that are stunning in volume and depth, all thanks to a special original technique.

Despite the sweeping and expressive nature of the works, the seascapes do not lose the transparency of the water and the lightness of the sails, and even vice versa - they attract with their voluminous texture, which you want to feel by touch.

Justina says that the main goal of her paintings is to convey atmosphere, not realism, and asks that her oil paintings be perceived as fragments of memories.

Despite the fact that various landscapes significantly dominate among her works, she considers people to be her main inspiration.

Xing-Yao Tsen

This young artist, originally from Taiwan, began painting when he was ten years old. Now twenty-nine and with his own style, Xing-Yao Tsen's paintings are recognized by both major art magazines and reputable art galleries.

The artist most often paints cityscapes of San Francisco, where he graduated from the Academy of Arts with a bachelor's degree.

He performs his oil works in a unique “floating” manner - some believe that due to this technique, his oil works can be confused with watercolors. The best time to create landscapes of Xing-Yao Tsen considers sunset and dawn hours.

Pedro Campos

Another fan of photorealism is Pedro Campos, a Spanish artist from Madrid. This oil painting can easily be confused with photography, but who would have thought! One way or another, Pedro’s paintings bring viewers into indescribable delight.

To create oil paintings, he chooses a variety of objects, the main thing being their texture, level of transparency, ability to reflect glare and other parameters that allow him to convey the volume and depth of a non-standard still life.

Most likely, it was his previous work as a restorer that contributed to Pedro’s interest in such realistic still life painting.

You can watch a video selection of other works using the oil painting technique here:

The Art Newspaper Russia presents the rating: the most expensive living Russian artists. If you are still sure that there were no Russian artists in the Western scene, we are ready to argue with that. The language of numbers.

The conditions were simple: each living artist could be represented by only one, his most expensive work. When compiling the rating, not only the results of public auctions were taken into account, but also the most high-profile private sales. The authors of the rating were guided by the principle “if something sells loudly, then someone needs it,” and therefore appreciated the work of marketers and press managers of artists who brought record private sales to the public. Important note: the rating is based solely on financial indicators; if it were based on the exhibition activity of artists, it would look somewhat different. External sources for analytics were resources Artnet.com, Artprice.com, Skatepress.com And Artinvestment.ru.

The US dollar was chosen as the currency for the world ranking; the British pound sterling was taken as the equivalent of sales of Russian artists (since 90% of domestic sales took place in London in this currency). The remaining 10% of works sold in US dollars and euros were recalculated at the exchange rate at the time of the transaction, as a result of which some positions changed places. In addition to the actual cost of the work, data was collected on the total capitalization of artists (the number of top works sold at auction over all years), on the place of a contemporary artist in the ranking of artists of all times, on the place of the participant’s most expensive work among all works sold by other authors, and also about nationality and country of residence. Statistics on repeat sales of each artist also contain important information as an objective indicator of investment
attractiveness.

Last year, 2013, significantly changed the position of contemporary artists in the international sales rankings. Of the top 50 most expensive works of art, 16 modern works of art were sold last season - a record number (for comparison, 17 works were sold from 2010 to 2012; there was only one sale in the 20th century). The demand for living artists is partly identical to the demand for all contemporary art, partly to the cynical understanding that the capitalization of assets after their death will invariably increase.

Among the Russian participants, the brothers turned out to be the most respectable Sergey And Alexey Tkachev(b. 1922 and 1925), the youngest - Anatoly Osmolovsky(b. 1969). The question is who will be new Jean-Michel Basquiat, while open. In the sales of our artists, clear classes of buyers are visible: the leaders are bought by foreign collectors and Russian oligarchs, places from 10th to 30th are provided by emigrant collectors, and the conditional bottom of the top 50 is our future, young collectors who have entered the market with “new » money.

1. Ilya Kabakov
It seems that in general he is the main Russian artist (which does not prevent Kabakov, who was born in Dnepropetrovsk, from describing himself as Ukrainian), the founding father of Moscow conceptualism (one of), the author of the term and practice of “total installation”. Since 1988 he has lived and worked in New York. He works in collaboration with his wife, Emilia Kabakova, which is why the title should look like “Ilya and Emilia Kabakov,” but since Ilya Iosifovich became known earlier than Ilya and Emilia, then let it remain so. The works are in the Tretyakov Gallery, the Russian Museum, the Hermitage, MoMA, Kolodzei Art Foundation(USA), etc.
Year of birth: 1933
Work: "Beetle". 1982
Date of sale: 02/28/2008
Price (GBP)1: 2,932,500
Total capitalization (GBP): 10,686,000
Place: 1
Average Job Cost (GBP): 117,429
Number of repeat sales: 12

2. Erik Bulatov
Using techniques that would later be called social art, he combined figurative painting with text in his works. In Soviet times, a successful illustrator of children's books. Since 1989 he has lived and worked in New York, and since 1992 in Paris. The first Russian artist with a personal exhibition at the Pompidou Center. The works are kept in the collections of the Tretyakov Gallery, the Russian Museum, the Pompidou Center, the Ludwig Museum in Cologne, etc., and are included in the collections of the Foundation Dina Verni, Viktor Bondarenko, Vyacheslav Kantor, Ekaterina and Vladimir Semenikhin, Igor Tsukanov.
Year of birth: 1933
Work: “Glory to the CPSU.” 1975
Date of sale: 02/28/2008
Price (GBP)1: 1,084,500
Total capitalization (GBP): 8,802,000
Place: 2
Average job cost (GBP): 163,000
Number of repeat sales: 11

3. Vitaly Komar and Alexander Melamid
The creators of Sots Art - an ironic movement in unofficial art that parodies the symbolism and techniques of officialdom. Since 1978 they have lived in New York. Until the mid-2000s they worked in pairs. As an art project, they organized the “sale of souls” of famous artists through an auction (soul Andy Warhol since then it has been owned by a Moscow artist Alena Kirtsova). Works are in the collections of MoMA, the Guggenheim Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Louvre, and in the collections Shalva Breus, Daria Zhukova And Roman Abramovich and etc.
Year of birth: 1943, 1945
Work: “Meeting of Solzhenitsyn and Böll at Rostropovich’s dacha.” 1972
Date of sale: 04/23/2010
Price (GBP)1: 657,250
Total capitalization (GBP): 3,014,000
Place: 7
Average job cost (GBP): 75,350
Number of repeat sales: 3

former comar&melamid artstudio archive

4. Semyon Faibisovich
A photorealist artist who remains the most accurate realist even now, when Semyon Natanovich is less interested in painting than in journalism. He exhibited on Malaya Gruzinskaya, where in 1985 he was noticed by New York dealers and collectors. Since 1987, it has been regularly exhibited in the USA and Western Europe. An active supporter of the repeal of the law on the promotion of homosexuality in Russia. Lives and works in Moscow. Works are in the collections of the Tretyakov Gallery, the Moscow House of Photography, museums in Germany, Poland, the USA, and are included in the collections Daria Zhukova And Roman Abramovich, Igor Markin, Igor
Tsukanova.

Year of birth: 1949
Work: “Soldiers” (from the “Station Stations” series). 1989
Date of sale: 10/13/2007
Price (GBP)1: 311,200
Total capitalization (GBP): 3,093,000
Place: 6
Average Job Cost (GBP): 106,655
Number of repeat sales: 7

5. Grigory (Grisha) Bruskin
The main character of the first and last Soviet auction Sotheby's in 1988, where his work Fundamental Lexicon became the top lot (£220 thousand). At the invitation of the German government, he created a monumental triptych for the reconstructed Reichstag in Berlin. Winner of the Kandinsky Prize in the “Project of the Year” nomination for the exhibition Time H at the Multimedia Art Museum. Lives and works in New York and Moscow. The works are in the collections of the Tretyakov Gallery, the Russian Museum, and the Pushkin Museum. A. S. Pushkin, the Ludwig Museum in Cologne, MoMA, the Museum of Jewish Culture (New York), etc., are included in the collections of the Queen of Spain Sofia, Peter Aven, Shalva Breus, Vladimir and Ekaterina Semenikhin, Milos Forman.
Year of birth: 1945
Work: “Logies. Part 1". 1987
Date of sale: 07.11.2000
Price (GBP)1: 424,000
Total capitalization (GBP): 720,000
Place: 15
Average job cost (GBP): 24,828
Number of repeat sales: 5

6. Oleg Tselkov
One of the most famous artists of the sixties, in the 1960s he began and still continues a series of paintings depicting rough, as if sculpted from clay, human faces (or figures), painted with bright aniline colors. Since 1977 he has lived in Paris. The works are in the collections of the Tretyakov Gallery, the Russian Museum, the Hermitage, the Zimmerli Museum of Rutgers University, etc., and are included in the collections Mikhail Baryshnikov, Arthur Miller, Igor Tsukanov. The largest private collection of Tselkov's works in Russia belongs to Evgeniy Yevtushenko.
Year of birth: 1934
Work: "Boy with Balloons." 1957
Date of sale: 11/26/2008
Price (GBP)1: 238,406
Total capitalization (GBP): 4,232,000
Place: 5
Average job cost (GBP): 53,570
Number of repeat sales: 14

7. Oscar Rabin
Leader of the “Lianozov group” (Moscow nonconformist artists of the 1950s-1960s), organizer of the scandalous Bulldozer exhibition 1974. He was the first in the Soviet Union to sell works privately. In 1978 he was deprived of Soviet citizenship. Lives and works in Paris. In 2006 he became a laureate of the Innovation Prize for his contribution to art. The works are in the collections of the Tretyakov Gallery, the Russian Museum, the Moscow Museum of Modern Art, the Zimmerli Museum of Rutgers University, and are included in the collections of Alexander Glezer, Vyacheslav Kantor, Alexander Kronik, Iveta and Tamaz Manasherov, Evgeniy Nutovich, Aslan Chekhoev.
Year of birth: 1928
Work: “The City and the Moon (Socialist
city)". 1959
Date of sale: 04/15/2008
Price (GBP)1: 171,939
Total capitalization (GBP): 5,397,000
Place: 3
Average job cost (GBP): 27,964
Number of repeat sales: 45

8. Zurab Tsereteli
The largest representative of already monumental art. Author of the monument to Peter I in Moscow and the monument Good conquers Evil in front of the UN building in New York. Founder of the Moscow Museum of Modern Art, president of the Russian Academy of Arts, creator of the Zurab Tsereteli Art Gallery, which operates at the above-mentioned academy. Sculptures of Zurab Tsereteli, in addition to Russia, adorn Brazil, Great Britain, Georgia, Spain, Lithuania, USA, France and Japan.
Year of birth: 1934
Work: “Dream of Athos”
Date of sale: 12/01/2009
Price (GBP)1: 151,250
Total capitalization (GBP): 498,000
Place: 19
Average job cost (GBP): 27,667
Number of repeat sales: 4

9. Viktor Pivovarov
One of the founders of Moscow conceptualism. Like Kabakov, the inventor of the concept album genre; like Kabakov, Bulatov and Oleg Vasiliev, a successful illustrator of children’s books who collaborated with the magazines “Murzilka” and “Funny Pictures”. Since 1982 he has lived and worked in Prague. The works are in the collections of the Tretyakov Gallery, the Russian Museum, and the Pushkin Museum. A. S. Pushkina, Kolodzei Art Foundation(USA), in the collections of Vladimir and Ekaterina Semenikhin, Igor Tsukanov.
Year of birth: 1937
Work: “Triptych with a snake.” 2000
Date of sale: 10/18/2008
Price (GBP)1: 145,250
Total capitalization (GBP): 482,000
Place: 20
Average job cost (GBP): 17,852
Number of repeat sales: 6

10. Alexander Melamid
Half of the creative tandem Komar - Melamid, which broke up in 2003. Together with Vitaly Komar, participant Bulldozer exhibition(where they died Double self-portrait, a seminal work of Sots Art). Since 1978 he has lived and worked in New York. There is no information about which famous collections contain Melamid’s works, created by him independently.
Year of birth: 1945
Work: “Cardinal José Saraiva Martins.” 2007
Date of sale: 10/18/2008
Price (GBP)1: 145,250
Total capitalization (GBP): 145,000
Place: 36
Average job cost (GBP): 145,000
Number of repeat sales: —

11. Francisco Infante-Arana
The owner of perhaps the most extensive list of exhibitions among Russian artists. Member of the kinetic group "Movement", in the 1970s he found his own version of photo performance, or “artifact” - geometric forms integrated into the natural landscape.
Year of birth: 1943
Work: “Building a sign.” 1984
Date of sale: 05/31/2006
Price (GBP)1: 142,400
Total capitalization (GBP): 572,000
Place: 17
Average job cost (GBP): 22,000
Number of repeat sales: —

12. Vladimir Nemukhin
Metaphysician. A classic of the second wave of Russian avant-garde, a member of the “Lianozov group”, one of the participants in the Bulldozer exhibition, curator (or initiator) of important exhibitions of the 1980s, when the unofficial Soviet
art was just becoming aware of itself.
Year of birth: 1925
Work: “Unfinished Solitaire.” 1966
Date of sale: 04/26/2006
Price (GBP)1: 240,000
Total capitalization (GBP): 4,338,000
Place: 4
Average Job Cost (GBP): 36,454
Number of repeat sales: 26

13. Vladimir Yankilevsky
Surrealist, one of the main names of post-war Moscow unofficial art, creator of monumental philosophical polyptychs.
Year of birth: 1938
Work: “Triptych No. 10. Anatomy of the soul. II." 1970
Date of sale: 04/23/2010
Price (GBP)1: 133,250
Total capitalization (GBP): 754,000
Place: 14
Average job cost (GBP): 12,780
Number of repeat sales: 7

14. Alexander Vinogradov and Vladimir Dubossarsky
Scenic project Paintings to order, which they began in the hopeless 1990s for painting, received what it deserved in the 2000s. The duet became popular with collectors, and one painting ended up in the collection of the Pompidou Center.
Year of birth: 1963, 1964
Work: "Night Fitness". 2004
Date of sale: 06/22/2007
Price (GBP)1: 132,000
Total capitalization (GBP): 1,378,000
Place: 11
Average job cost (GBP): 26,500
Number of repeat sales: 4

15. Sergey Volkov
One of the heroes of perestroika art, known for his expressive paintings with thoughtful statements. Soviet auction participant Sotheby's in 1988.
Year of birth: 1956
Work: “Double Vision.
Triptych"
Date of sale: 05/31/2007
Price (GBP)1: 132,000
Total capitalization (GBP): 777,000
Place: 12
Average job cost (GBP): 38,850
Number of repeat sales: 4

16. AES + F (Tatyana Arzamasova, Lev Evzovich, Evgeniy Svyatsky, Vladimir Fridkes)
AES projects were distinguished by their good presentation in the slack 1990s, which is why they were remembered. Now they are making large animated murals that are broadcast on dozens of screens.
Year of birth: 1955, 1958, 1957, 1956
Work: “Warrior No. 4”
Date of sale: 03/12/2008
Price (GBP)1: 120,500
Total capitalization (GBP): 305,000
Place: 27
Average job cost (GBP): 30,500
Number of repeat sales: —

17. Lev Tabenkin
A sculptor and painter with a sculptural vision, as if sculpting his heroes from clay.
Year of birth: 1952
Work: "Jazz Orchestra". 2004
Date of sale: 06/30/2008
Price (GBP)1: 117,650
Total capitalization (GBP): 263,000
Place: 28
Average job cost (GBP): 26,300
Number of repeat sales: 7

18. Mikhail (Misha Shaevich) Brusilovsky
Sverdlovsk surrealist, author of meaningful allegories.
Year of birth: 1931
Work: "Football". 1965
Date of sale: 11/28/2006
Price (GBP)1: 108,000
Total capitalization (GBP): 133,000
Place: 38
Average job cost (GBP): 22,167
Number of repeat sales: —

19. Olga Bulgakova
One of the main figures of the intelligentsia “carnival” painting of the Brezhnev era. Corresponding Member
Russian Academy of Arts.
Year of birth: 1951
Work: “Dream of Red
bird." 1988
Date of sale: 11/22/2010
Price (GBP)1: 100,876
Total capitalization (GBP): 219,000
Place: 31
Average job cost (GBP): 36,500
Number of repeat sales: —

20. Alexander Ivanov
An abstract artist who is known primarily as a businessman, collector and creator of the Faberge Museum in Baden-Baden (Germany).
Year of birth: 1962
Work: "Love". 1996
Date of sale: 06/05/2013
Price (GBP)1: 97,250
Total capitalization (GBP): 201,000
Place: 33
Average Job Cost (GBP): 50,250
Number of repeat sales: —

21. Ivan Chuikov
An independent wing of Moscow pictorial conceptualism. Author of a series of paintings-objects Windows. Somehow in the 1960s he burned all the paintings, which is why gallery owners are still sad.
Year of birth: 1935
Work: "Untitled". 1986
Date of sale: 03/12/2008
Price (GBP)1: 96,500
Total capitalization (GBP): 1,545,000
Place: 10
Average Job Cost (GBP): 36,786
Number of repeat sales: 8

22. Konstantin Zvezdochetov
In his youth, a member of the Mukhomor group, which called themselves “the fathers of the “new wave” in the Soviet Union” -
with good reason; with the onset of creative maturity, participant of the Venice Biennale and Kassel
documenta. Researcher and connoisseur of the visual in Soviet grassroots culture.
Year of birth: 1958
Product: "Perdo-K-62M"
Date of sale: 06/13/2008
Price (GBP)1: 92,446
Total capitalization (GBP): 430,000
Place: 22
Average job cost (GBP): 22,632
Number of repeat sales: 2

23. Natalya Nesterova
One of the main art stars of the Brezhnev stagnation. Loved by collectors for its textured, painterly style.
Year of birth: 1944
Work: “The Miller and His
son". 1969
Date of sale: 06/15/2007
Price (GBP)1: 92,388
Total capitalization (GBP): 1,950,000
Place: 9
Average job cost (GBP): 20,526
Number of repeat sales: 15

24. Maxim Kantor
An expressionist painter who performed in the Russian pavilion at the Venice Biennale in 1997 - as well as a publicist and writer, author of a philosophical and satirical novel Drawing tutorial about the ins and outs of the Russian art world.
Year of birth: 1957
Work: “The Structure of Democracy.” 2003
Date of sale: 10/18/2008
Price (GBP)1: 87,650
Total capitalization (GBP): 441,000
Place: 21
Average Job Cost (GBP): 44,100
Number of repeat sales: 2

25. Andrey Sidersky
Creates paintings in the style of psy-art he invented. Translated works of Carlos Castaneda and Richard Bach into Russian.
Year of birth: 1960
Work: “Triptych”
Date of sale: 12/04/2009
Price (GBP)1: 90,000
Total capitalization (GBP): 102,000
Place: 42
Average job cost (GBP): 51,000
Number of repeat sales: —

26. Valery Koshlyakov
Known for paintings with architectural motifs. The largest representative of the “South Russian wave”. Often uses cardboard boxes, bags, and tape. The first exhibition with his participation was held in a public toilet in Rostov-on-Don in 1988.
Year of birth: 1962
Work: "Versailles". 1993
Date of sale: 03/12/2008
Price (GBP)1: 72,500
Total capitalization (GBP): 346,000
Place: 26
Average job cost (GBP): 21,625
Number of repeat sales: 8

27. Alexey Sundukov
Laconic, leaden-colored paintings about the “leaden abominations” of everyday Russian life.
Year of birth: 1952
Work: “The Essence of Being.” 1988
Date of sale: 04/23/2010
Price (GBP)1: 67,250
Total capitalization (GBP): 255,000
Place: 29
Average job cost (GBP): 25,500
Number of repeat sales: 1

28. Igor Novikov
Belongs to the generation of Moscow nonconformist artists of the late 1980s.
Year of birth: 1961
Work: “The Kremlin Breakfast, or Moscow for Sale.” 2009
Date of sale: 03.12.2010
Price (GBP)1: 62,092
Total capitalization (GBP): 397,000
Place: 24
Average job cost (GBP): 15,880
Number of repeat sales: 3

29. Vadim Zakharov
Archivist of Moscow conceptualism. The author of spectacular installations on profound topics, represented Russia at the Venice
biennial
Year of birth: 1959
Work: "Baroque". 1986-1994
Date of sale: 10/18/2008
Price (GBP)1: 61,250
Total capitalization (GBP): 243,000
Place: 30
Average job cost (GBP): 20,250
Number of repeat sales: —

30. Yuri Krasny
Author of art programs for children with special needs.
Year of birth: 1925
Work: “The Smoker”
Date of sale: 04/04/2008Price (GBP)1: 59,055
Total capitalization (GBP): 89,000
Place: 44
Average job cost (GBP): 11,125
Number of repeat sales: 8

31. Sergey and Alexey Tkachev
Classics of late Soviet impressionism, students of Arkady Plastov, famous for their paintings from the life of the Russian village.
Year of birth: 1922, 1925
Work: “In the Field.” 1954
Date of sale: 01.12.2010
Price (GBP)1: 58,813
Total capitalization (GBP): 428,000
Place: 23
Average job cost (GBP): 22,526
Number of repeat sales: 4

32. Svetlana Kopystyanskaya
Known for installations of paintings. After the Moscow auction Sotheby's in 1988 he works abroad.
Year of birth: 1950
Work: “Seascape”
Date of sale: 10/13/2007
Price (GBP)1: 57,600
Total capitalization (GBP): 202,000
Place: 32
Average job cost (GBP): 22,444
Number of repeat sales: 2

33. Boris Orlov
A sculptor close to social art. He is famous for his works in the ironic “imperial” style and his masterful craftsmanship of bronze busts and bouquets.
Year of birth: 1941
Work: "Sailor". 1976
Date of sale: 10/17/2013
Price (GBP)1: 55,085
Total capitalization (GBP): 174,000
Place: 34
Average job cost (GBP): 17,400
Number of repeat sales: 1

34. Vyacheslav Kalinin
The author of expressive paintings from the life of the urban lower classes and drinking bohemia.
Year of birth: 1939
Artwork: “Self-portrait with a hang glider”
Date of sale: 11/25/2012
Price (GBP)1: 54,500
Total capitalization (GBP): 766,000
Place: 13
Average job cost (GBP): 12,767
Number of repeat sales: 24

35. Evgeny Semenov
Known for his photo series with Down's disease patients playing the roles of gospel characters.
Year of birth: 1960
Work: "Heart". 2009
Date of sale: 06/29/2009
Price (GBP)1: 49,250
Total capitalization (GBP): 49,000
Place: 48
Average job cost (GBP): 49,000
Number of repeat sales: —

36. Yuri Cooper
He became famous for his nostalgic canvases with old household items. Author of the play Twelve paintings from the life of the artist, staged at the Moscow Art Theater. A.P. Chekhov.
Year of birth: 1940
Work: “Window. Dassa Street, 56." 1978
Date of sale: 06/09/2010
Price (GBP)1: 49,250
Total capitalization (GBP): 157,000
Place: 35
Average job cost (GBP): 2,754
Number of repeat sales: 14

37. Alexander Kosolapov
A socialist artist whose work has become a target for all sorts of attacks. During the Art Moscow 2005 fair, one of his works was destroyed by a religious fanatic with a hammer.
Year of birth: 1943
Work: "Marlboro Malevich." 1987
Date of sale: 03/12/2008
Price (GBP)1: 48,500
Total capitalization (GBP): 510,000
Place: 18
Average job cost (GBP): 15,938
Number of repeat sales: 1

38. Leonid Sokov
A leading sculptor of Sots Art who combined folklore with politics. Among the famous works Device for determining nationality by nose shape.
Year of birth: 1941
Work: “A bear hitting a sickle with a hammer.” 1996
Date of sale: 03/12/2008
Price (GBP)1: 48,500
Total capitalization (GBP): 352,000
Place: 25
Average job cost (GBP): 13,538
Number of repeat sales: 7

39. Vladimir Ovchinnikov
One of the patriarchs of unofficial art in Leningrad. Orthodox version of Fernando Botero.
Year of birth: 1941
Work: “Angels and Railway Tracks.” 1977
Date of sale: 04/17/2007
Price (GBP)1: 47,846
Total capitalization (GBP): 675,000
Place: 16
Average job cost (GBP): 15,341
Number of repeat sales: —

40. Konstantin Khudyakov
Author of paintings on religious subjects. Currently working in digital art technology.
Year of birth: 1945
Work: “The Last Supper.” 2007
Date of sale: 02/18/2011
Price (GBP)1: 46,850
Total capitalization (GBP): 97,000
Place: 43
Average job cost (GBP): 32,333
Number of repeat sales: —

41. Ernst Neizvestny
An icon of Soviet nonconformism - ever since he openly objected to General Secretary Nikita Khrushchev at the vernissage of the legendary exhibition dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the Moscow Union of Artists. After that, he made a monument at Khrushchev’s grave and a monument in front of the UN European headquarters.
Year of birth: 1925
Work: “Untitled”
Date of sale: 06/08/2010
Price (GBP)1: 46,850
Total capitalization (GBP): 2,931,000
Place: 8
Average job cost (GBP): 24,839
Number of repeat sales: 13

42. Anatoly Osmolovsky
One of the main figures of Moscow actionism of the 1990s, art theorist, curator, publisher and head of the Baza Institute research and educational program, laureate of the first Kandinsky Prize.
Year of birth: 1969
Work: “Bread” (from the “Pagans” series). 2009
Date of sale: 04/23/2010
Price (GBP)1: 46,850
Total capitalization (GBP): 83,000
Place: 46
Average job cost (GBP): 11,857
Number of repeat sales: —

43. Dmitry Vrubel
Photorealist painter, known mainly for his painting of Brezhnev and Honecker kissing (more precisely, thanks to the author’s reproduction on the Berlin Wall).
Year of birth: 1960
Work: “Fraternal kiss (triptych).” 1990
Date of sale: 11/25/2013
Price (GBP)1: 45,000

Place: 40
Average job cost (GBP): 16,429
Number of repeat sales: 2

44. Leonid Lamm
The author of installations that combine motifs of the Russian avant-garde and scenes of Soviet prison life. Lives in America. In the 1970s, he spent three years in prisons and camps on false charges.
Year of birth: 1928
Work: “Apple II” (from the “Seventh Heaven” series). 1974-1986
Date of sale: 12/16/2009
Price (GBP)1: 43,910
Total capitalization (GBP): 115,000
Place: 41
Average job cost (GBP): 14,375
Number of repeat sales: —

Irina Nakhova’s picturesque installations of the 1980s in her apartment can claim authorship in the “total” genre.

45. Irina Nakhova
Muse of Moscow conceptualism. Winner of the 2013 Kandinsky Prize for “Project of the Year”. In 2015 at the 56th Venice Biennale
will represent Russia.
Year of birth: 1955
Work: "Triptych". 1983
Date of sale: 03/12/2008
Price (GBP)1: 38,900
Total capitalization (GBP): 85,000
Place: 45
Average job cost (GBP): 17,000
Number of repeat sales: 1

46. ​​Katya Filippova
Avant-garde clothing designer who became famous during perestroika. She decorated the windows of the Parisian department store Galeries Lafayette, and was friends with Pierre Cardin.
Year of birth: 1958
“Work: Marina Ladynina” (from the “Russian Hollywood” series)
Date of sale: 03/12/2008
Price (GBP)1: 38,900
Total capitalization (GBP): 39,000
Place: 49
Average job cost (GBP): 39,000
Number of repeat sales: —

47. Boris Zaborov
Theater artist, book illustrator. In 1980 he emigrated to Paris and worked on costumes for the Comedy Française.
Year of birth: 1935
Work: “Participant”. 1981
Date of sale: 10/30/2006
Price (GBP)1: 36,356
Total capitalization (GBP): 67,000
Place: 47
Average job cost (GBP): 13,400
Number of repeat sales: 2

48. Rostislav Lebedev
Classic socialist artist, colleague (and workshop neighbor) of Boris Orlov and Dmitry Prigov. Creatively transformed visual propaganda from Soviet times.
Year of birth: 1946
Work: “Russian Fairy Tale”. 1949
Date of sale: 06/03/2008
Price (GBP)1: 34,000
Total capitalization (GBP): 122,000
Place: 39
Average job cost (GBP): 24,400
Number of repeat sales: 2

49. Andrey Filippov
Belongs to the Moscow conceptual school. The author of paintings and installations united by the theme “Moscow - the Third Rome”. Since 2009, together with Yuri Albert and Victor Skersis, he has been a member of the Cupid group.
Year of birth: 1959
Work: "Seven Feet Under the Keel." 1988
Date of sale: 05/31/2006
Price (GBP)1: 33,600
Total capitalization (GBP): 137,000
Place: 37
Average job cost (GBP): 12,455
Number of repeat sales: 3

50. Vladimir Shinkarev
The founder and ideologist of the Leningrad art group “Mitki”, in whose novel Mitki this term was first used. The novel was written out of boredom while working in the boiler room.
Year of birth: 1954
Work: “Lenin Square I”. 1999
Date of sale: 06/30/2008
Price (GBP)1: 32,450
Total capitalization (GBP): 33,000
Place: 50
Average job cost (GBP): 16,500
Number of repeat sales: —

Sales vs exhibitions

Market recognition and recognition by the professional community seem like different things to many, but the division into “commercial” and “non-commercial” artists is very arbitrary. Thus, of the Russian artists who have exhibited at the Venice Biennale of Contemporary Art over the past ten years (and this is the pinnacle of their professional career), seven (if counting by person, then 11 people) are included in our rating. And the top 10 artists from the rating either exhibited at the Venice Biennale before, or had personal exhibitions in major museums. As for those wonderful artists who were not included in the rating, their absence or not very outstanding sales can be explained simply and banally. Collectors are conservative and even from the most avant-garde creators they prefer to buy paintings (paintings, objects similar to paintings or photographs) or sculpture (or objects similar to sculpture). There are no record-breaking performances or giant installations in our rating (installations are usually bought by museums, but the prices are museum-quality, at a discount). That is why such stars as Andrey Monastyrsky, Oleg Kulik, Pavel Pepperstein(until recently I mainly did graphics, and graphics are a priori cheaper than painting) or, for example, Nikolai Polissky, whose grandiose designs have not yet found any understanding collectors.

In addition, the market is also conservative because recognition comes slowly - note that in the top 10 all artists were born in 1950 or older. That is, promising participants of the biennale still have everything ahead of them.