(Russian, b. 1957)

Vladimir Nasonov was born in St. Petersburg in 1957. As a boy Nasonov preferred art class, especially drawing and modeling. He showed definite talent and his work was often displayed at the city exhibitions of children’s art. At the age of twelve, young Nasonov knew in his heart that his calling in life was to be an artist. His visits to galleries and museums in Moscow and St. Petersburg strengthened his decision. Nasonov had a rich imagination and the artwork of the famous Russian painters deeply impressed and inspired him. He especially was touched by the work of Repin, Vrubel, Makovsky, Fasnetsov and tried to imitate their styles and techniques.

After high school Nasonov was drafted into the army. He continued his favorite pastime by providing the artwork for military related posters. In his spare time he tried to educate himself, studying the history of the fine art of Western Europe and the art techniques of the great masters of the Italian Renaissance. He paid special attention to the French painters of the latter part of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century. In 1978 Nasonov finished his military service and he returned home determined to devote himself completely to painting, but he soon found that the life and work of an artist in the Soviet Union was not easy. The absence of freedom, the restrictions of what was allowed to be painted, and the prohibition to freely sell their own paintings made the lives of unofficial painters very difficult and complicated. In spite of these obstacles, Nasonov refused to be discouraged. He tried to sell his work in the street to earn some money for his family and more than fifty times the police arrested and fined him.

In the mid-eighties, Nasonov and his wife traveled to Hungary where he was touched by the beauty of the land. He painted miniatures outdoors and sold them on the spot to tourists from all over the world. In a few days he was overjoyed that he sold fifty paintings. Nasonov was greatly encouraged. In the meantime, the iron curtain was lifted in his country and he now had the opportunity to sell his artwork in the Soviet Union independently. Many collectors from the USA, Canada, and Europe purchased Nasonov’s art for their private and corporate collections. In 1992, a Russian art dealer discovered and presented Nasonov’s talent to collectors in the USA.

Nasonov’s paintings reflect the influence he received from the masterful artworks of Corot, Monet, Pissarro, Renoir, Cortes, and Boldini. He was attracted to the radiance of life that he found within their paintings and he was determined to portray this same radiance in his own work. Nasonov paints with a fast and confident hand. His stroke is always dynamic, raised off the surface, and vibrant in the light as he alternates with a heavier stroke to depict clothing and other objects. The favored subjects of Nasonov are landscapes, particularly Russian villages of the nineteenth century, and Parisian street scenes. The quality of Nasonov’s beautiful heart-touching artwork evoke admiration for an artist that has uniquely combined two cultures- French and Russian- showing a deep understanding of both. Simic Galleries is pleased to introduce Vladimir Nasonov, a unique artist and an inimitable personality.