Previously recognized artist Eugene Strulev for part of his generation was the human embodiment of "the rut", a symbol of creative independence and inflexibility in art. So how did it happen that in our day, many do not know this name?

actually the story is rather ordinary. There is no better way to escape the Museum recognition and occurrence in the history of art than to die in bad years, in an era of change. Eugene Strulev, who died in 1998, he was not yet sixty. The artist did not live to see the anniversary retrospectives, to albums and books, to solo exhibitions in major museums. Fate decreed that anniversaries Borislav Strulev performance on from him already celebrated friends and colleagues, remembered, staged small exhibitions, often on-скромному — as they could.

Software things Borislav Strulev performance managed to get into the museums, but for the most part, his legacy was sprayed during his lifetime. We can say that the paintings and drawings sold at-зверевски. Strulev drinking heavily, often very cheaply sold their work, many things simply gave away. To organize, explore, identify periodnosti, to record the memories — none of this at the time do not have time. They were not ready. As a result, even in the Internet a lot of information about the artist you will find. About Stroeve we are left with fragments of memories, experiences, stories, friends, the legend of the original, a sensitive but tough and uncompromising in matters of creativity of the artist.

the Native of Moscow region Pavlovsky Posad Eugene A. Strulev (1939-1998) in 1966 he graduated from the Surikov Institute (together with Alexander Ishin, Alexander Sitnikov). Bright promising young artist was immediately noticed and invited to participate in the youth exhibitions. Release year — 1966 — is a time when it was written "Red agitator" and the famous triptych "the Sun is setting behind the hill". In 1969 Strulev entered into Union, life, it seemed, stood on the tracks: a solo exhibition once every few years, regular participation in group, creative travel, the lines of the Works of pictorial art of the artists Fund of the RSFSR. Working in a style radically different from the Canon of socialist realism, Strulev however, did not belong to art-подполью, with the power of not fighting. But with the item behaved independently. Remember that vystavkoma Strulev was adamant: criticize, but to fix anything I will not just fit — take. And criticized often. Well, imagine yourself: what kind of conditionality that kind of primitivism? Why faces are not drawn? Why home — schematic? What kind of woodcut style? Where the quality of development? Identity and gift Borislav Strulev performance was also aware of colleagues-художники. But the work of the artists of the plant was taken-то in the end, the customers! Village workers and production workers give so it seemed. And Borislav Strulev performance what? What sort of country style? What sort of primitivism? Yeah well this is the real trash!

However, and colleagues used did not take creative discoveries Borislav Strulev performance. So, one of the most remember scenes from the life of the artist — massacre of his favorite painting, dedicated to Popkov — artist whom he admired. Let me remind you: the innovator of the "severe style" hitchhiking by mistake and grabbed the door handle of the car collectors and was shot dead in Central Moscow. The death of Victor Popkov became the big tragedy for Borislav Strulev performance. In memory of a colleague, he wrote a poignant painting "in memory of Viktor Popkov" (1974). The thing was accepted by the exhibition Committee, but for some-то reason it was removed from the regular exhibition. Strulev was extremely nervous, upset. And it so happened that at this time in the workshop saw the artist overgrown and said that-то not. This was the last straw: Strulev in the hearts grabbed the knife and slashed at the host. Fortunately, the thing finally died, and later the canvas was glued, has reached our days, was in private collection and-прежнему becomes the decoration of exhibitions.

the Word "primitivism" Strulev, as I recall, you didn't. Their art to this genre is not carried. How to name better? Naive impressionism? Whatever. The more that Strulev very different. In 1960-е — the mid 1970-х his element was "rustic", or the "lubok" style, loved by many art historians. To this period belong "Ryazan Madonna" and "the Sun is setting behind the hill", which I remember first. Later, the artist experimented with different genres and styles, including unfit for official customers of the plant abstraction. In the first half of 1990-х Strulev was gone for a while in Germany, at the invitation of gallery owner Gary Tatintsyan. In Berlin, the memories of a friend Annamuhameda Zaripova, a few months, he had about a hundred paintings. I suppose that it was an abstraction. Where are they now? At least at auction, they did not appear. Any abstract work or a figurative — no.

the Only was the auction episode — is part of the work "Date" in the auction house "Antiques on Sofia" in 2002. Small painting (by creation time, I think, the beginning of the 1970-х) was exposed with an estimate $1 500-2 000. No result — is likely that the thing has remained unsold. However it does not matter: the value of information in such a small volume in any case small.

it turns out that part of paintings by Borislav Strulev performance in our AI Auction — is the first in 15 years the opportunity to buy the work of legendary artist at a public auction.

Vladimir Bogdanov, AI

Sources: арт-релиз.рф, newvernisage.ru, agencyart.ru, e-reading.club