gennady zubkov - voyage à calderara di reno
September 05 2009 - October 31 2009
Genndy Zubkov’s new series of paintings, Voyage a Calerara di Reno, were conceived and partially executed in Italy, a country the artist has come to know more intimately over the past few years. His spring-time visits coincide with the birth of his grandson and continue to explore the respect nature inspires in the artist. The current series of works continue his investigations of geometric form, light and shadow yet have more subtlety in their variations.
Views of the horizon, with small yellow houses and pink trees become stripes of subtle color that sometimes bring the landscapes and still lifes of Giorgio Morandi to mind. Not surprising when one realizes that the two artists are working with the same Bolognese light and subjects. Both artists have more in common, as well. Zubkov teaches fundamentals of painting to small groups of students and Morandi taught drawing and printmaking for years. Both artists live the somewhat reclusive lives of artists surrounded by close friends and family, preferring to save their energies for art.
Zubkov described the experience of seeing the fog roll in over the mountains and along the Adriatic coast where the blend of horizon and land becomes one hazy image. This direct contact with nature inspires a feeling of awe and a connection to his spirituality where the distinction between heaven and earth is also blurred.
Born in 1940 in Perm, Russia, Gennady Zubkov lives and works today in St. Petersburg. He graduated from the Painting and Graphic Department of the Leningrad Pedagogical Institute in 1968. From 1963 - 1973, Zubkov studied the concepts of Impressionism, Cubism, Suprematism, and Matushin's color theory under the tutelage of Vladimir Sterligov, a student of Malevich. From Sterligov's "spherical geometry theory", Zubkov derived a new painting technique, "form creates form."
A stated goal of the artist is "to show the beauty of the world around us so that man might begin to relate more kindly and carefully to everything around him and to preserve the beauty of nature." From 1986 to present, he has taught painting to young artists and has founded the artistic groups "Form+ Color" and "17 April." He is a member of many artist associations including the International Federation of Artists (IFA), and the Society of "Free Culture." The artist has displayed his works in more than 150 personal and group exhibitions, including exhibitions at the State Russian Museum and Moscow’s Pushkin Museum of Art.
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