VOYNOV Vsevolod Vladimirovich

March 1, 1880 (St. Petersburg) — November 12, 1945 (Leningrad)

Graphic artist, painter, scene-designer, art historian

In 1904 Voynov graduated from the physic-mathematical faculty of St. Petersburg University. He did not receive systematic art education. In early 1900s he studied at the School of Drawing under Society of the Encouragement of Artists (OPKh).  In 1910s Voynov studied painting under the guidance of V. I. Denisov.

Voynov lived in St. Petersburg (Petrograd–Leningrad). He was engaged in graphic art, easel painting and book illustrations. He painted andscapes, portraits; he also worked in the field of woodcut, linocut, etching and lithography.  Since 1906 he worked as a scene-designer. He designed productions for V. F. Komissarzhevskaia’s theatre and the Theatre of Musical Drama. Voynov was a member of Artistic Association (1912), Obshchina khudozhnikov (“Artist community”, 1912–1929), Mir Iskusstva (“World of art”, 1922, 1924), Shestnadtsat (“Sixteen”, 1922–1927). He was also a member of the All-Russia Society of the Encouragement of Arts (1928–1929), where he headed the section of engravers.

Voynov exposed his works at the First State Free Exhibition of Works of Art (1919), exhibition of original drawings of Petrograd bookplate (1923) in Petrograd, exhibitions Engraving of the USSR for 10 years in Moscow, Russian Drawing for 10 years of October Revolution (1927) in Moscow, Graphic Art in the USSR (1917–1927), Russian xylography for 10 years (1927), Art ex-libris (1928) in Leningrad, Artists of RSFSR for 15 years (1932–1934) in Moscow and Leningrad. He also took part in exhibitions of Russian art in New York, St. Louis, Memphis, New Orleans, Los Angeles, Portland (1924–1925, travelling exhibition), Riga, Winterthur (1929), the Second International Exhibition of Graphic Art in Florence (1927), the 16th International Exhibition of Art in Venice (1928), the Artistic and Handicraft Exhibition of the USSR in New York (1929) and others.

Voynov taught at the Higher State Artistic and Technical Workshops (VKhUTEMAS) — the Higher Art Technical Institute (VKhUTEIN, 1922–1924), at Leningrad Choreographic School (1924–1926), Leningrad Technical School of Industrial Art (1932–1934), Leningrad Institute of Advanced Studies (1933–1937), and Leningrad film studio of scientific, educational and technological films (Lentekhfilm, 1937–1939).

In 1919–1922 Voynov worked at the department of drawing and engraving of the Hermitage, in 1922–1932 — at the department of graphic art at the State Russian Museum; firstly as a curator, then as a head of the department.