In early March, Forbes published a world ranking of billionaires 2016. In the Russian part of the rating, first place was taken by Leonid Mikhelson, the state of which during the year increased by $2.7 billion and reached $14.4 billion. This result allowed 60-летнему billionaire to take exactly 60-е place in the world ranking.

what the certificate of the new No. 1 gives Forbes: "Leonid Mikhelson — the main shareholder of the largest independent gas producer in Russia NOVATEK and petrochemical holding "SIBUR". He also owns minority stakes in PSB. Partner Mikhelson, NOVATEK and SIBUR — Gennady Timchenko. Another co-owner of petrochemical holding is Kirill Shamalov... Michelson enthusiastically collects art and sponsors exhibitions in Russia and USA. His father was Director of a construction trust Kuybyshevtruboprovodstroy — to the Ministry of construction of oil and gas industry of the USSR".

About money is clear, turn to art.

Michelson — founder and President of the Foundation V-A-C (English abbreviation "Victoria — the art of being modern"), a person who is Teresa Mavica. The Fund, named for the daughter of a billionaire, organizes exhibitions of contemporary art of foreign and Russian artists, awards grants, shows abroad including Russian authors. In the list of exhibition-related projects V-A-C, Russian star names appear Anatoly Osmolovsky, Arseniy Zhilyaev, Andrei Monastyrski.

In press Michelson referred to as a patron. He is a member of the International Board of Trustees of the Tate in London, is included in the Composition of the Board of Trustees of the State Russian Museum "Friends of Russian Museum", and also of the Board of Trustees of the New Museum in new-Йорке. In the interests of the latter in 2011 he financed giant installation Belgian artist Cartsen Heller for his retrospective. In Russia, the Foundation participated in the organization of retrospectives Alexandra Exter in the Moscow Museum of modern art, as well as personal computers of Andrew's Monastery.

About the history and composition of the collection the billionaire is known far less than his achievements in business. In 2000-е years Michelson has gathered mostly Russian art, Russian impressionism. Certainly makes an interesting, but not public buy overseas on "Russian bid". But when a Fund was created by V-A-C (i.e. after 2009), a collection of Michelson began to develop in a new key: ceased to be a private collection, but a collection. It appeared the world the first names of postwar and contemporary art. Now in the collection Fund V-A-C is the work of Wassily Kandinsky, Natalia Goncharova, Andy Warhol, Willem de Kuninga, Alberto Giacometti, Rudolf Stingel, Gerhard Richter, Sigmar Polke, Bridget Riley, photographer Nikolay Bakharev. pictures of some of the projects can be found in Facebook Fund the hashtag #vaccollection.

to See these things with your own eyes in Moscow, in a comfortable exhibition environment will be possible only year through three. By this time Leonid Mikhelson is going to build his new Museum. We are talking about the center for contemporary art in place of huge power plants HPP-2 on Bolotnaya square, which was recently bought by a billionaire. the Project centre for contemporary art has made Renzo piano, the architect who designed the Pompidou Centre. So there is reason to believe that by the middle of 2019 current collection "Russian Forbes No. 1" will be available to the General public.

Vladimir Bogdanov, AI

Sources: forbes.ru, artinvestment.ru, v-a-c.ru, rusmuseum.ru, whitechapelgallery.org, artinvestment.ru