VASNETSOV Yury Alexeevich

March 9, 1900 (Vyatka) — May 3, 1973 (Leningrad)

Graphic artist, painter

Vasnetsov was born to a family of priest. He was related in kinship with V. M. and A. M. Vasnetsov. He studied painting and drawing under the guidance of A. I. Stolbov in Vyatka. In 1921 Vasnetsov moved to Petrograd, entered the State Free Art Studios; in the same year they were renamed the Higher State Artistic and Technical Workshops (VKhUTEMAS), in 1923 — the Higher Art Technical Institute (VKhUTEIN). Vasnetsov studied under I. E. Braz, K. S. Petrov-Vodkin, and N. E. Radlov. After graduating from the Institute, he continued to study at the State Institute of Artistic Culture (GINKhUK) under K. S. Malevich. Vasnetsov also followed the advices of M. V. Matyushin and V. V. Lebedev. In 1932–1934 Vasnetsov studied at the postgraduate courses of the Institute of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture under the USSR Academy of Fine Arts.

When Vasnetsov was a student of the VKhUTEIN he collaborated with the department of the children and youthful literature at the State publishing house, headed by V. V. Lebedev. In 1930s Vasnetsov drew illustrations to the books The Humpbacked Horse by P. P. Yershov, Fifty Piglets by K. I. Chukovsky, Three bears by L. N. Tolstoy etc. Vasnetsov’s illustrations made him famous in art circles. He became master of the children’s book. At the same time Vasnetsov created easel lithographs on the same fairy-tale motifs.

In 1931 Vasnetsov together with the artist N. I. Kostrov made a trip to the White Sea in order to gather material for creative work.

In the beginning of the Great Patriotic War Vasnetsov was evacuated to Molotov (now Perm). In 1943 he moved to Zagorsk (Sergiev Posad), worked as a chief artist in the Institute of Toy. During and after the War Vasnetsov was engaged in book graphic art. In 1943 he designed the English folk songs, in 1947 — Koshkin Dom (“The Cat’s House”) by S. Y. Marshak, and different folkloric collected stories. The most famous late works of Vasnetsov were illustrations to the books Ladushki (“Pat-a-cake”) in 1964, Raduga-duga (“Rainbow-arc”) in 1969. In 1966 Vasnetsov was conferred a title of the People’s Artist of the RSFSR (Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic); in 1971 he was the USSR State Prize Laureate.

Vasnetsov painted a lot of paintings during his lifetime, but he did not expose his works. He thought that it could entail the accusations of formalism.

The retrospective exhibition of the Vasnetsov’s works was held in 1979 in the State Russian Museum.

Vasnetsov became famous as an illustrator of the children’s book. His works were appreciated highly by contemporaries. His illustrations became classics of the book art. Vasnetsov developed his own recognizable style in graphic art, which was based on the interaction of the professional art and folk primitive style lubok.

Malevich and Matyushin influenced on the Vasnetsov’s manner of painting. The main components of his works were composition and color. Vasnetsov’s early paintings of 1920s–1930s in suprematism and primitivism style were rare.

Works by Yury Vasnetsov are in many collections of the Russian museums, including the State Tretyakov Gallery, the State Russian Museum, the Pushkin State museum of Fine Arts.