Shushary, 2024

Vladimir Kolesnikov, born in 1969, is an artist who uses a unique painting technique combining oil pastels, oils and acrylics. His works resemble prints. "I have been using this technique for 20 years and I am constantly looking for new ways and methods. I strive to achieve the effect of a print, lithography, so that it is not obvious how the material is applied," says the artist. Kolesnikov's creative journey began in the 1990s, he started by imitating the drawings of old masters, gradually developing his own style. One of the artist's favorite periods is the High Renaissance. Its heritage is reflected in the perfect composition, accurate anatomy, carefully painted figures, and deep elaboration of details in the artist's works. "Sometimes I instantly see the painting like a flash in my head, and sometimes it takes a lot of effort to create a painting layer by layer, like in Photoshop. And you can never predict the result." Different contexts coexist in his art. He combines recognizable works from world art and pin-up girls - the epitome of popular culture with its cult of desire and attractiveness. Masterpieces of the past serve as the artist’s library, in which one can search for parallels and connections with the current images, events and phenomena. The content of Kolesnikov's works, despite the supreme painting technique, is deliberately simple and, in fact, resembles comic strips.