Artist Vladimir Ovchinnikov. Biography

Artist and local historian Vladimir Ovchinnikov was born on February 17, 1938 in Stalinabad (now Dushanbe). He graduated from the Moscow Institute of Civil Engineering (MISI), worked on construction sites, was engaged in scientific activities, and received a PhD in Economics.

He lived in Moscow until 1998, and after retirement moved to Borovsk, Kaluga Region.

The Artist's Path

Ovchinnikov began to get interested in painting at school, but he was able to actively devote himself to creativity only after moving. In 2000, his first solo exhibition was held at the Borovskaya Art Gallery, where about 100 works were presented — landscapes, portraits and still lifes made in pastels.

In 2004, the artist became the winner of the "Surprise the Country" competition for wall paintings in Borovsk. In 2005, the Central House of Artists hosted his exhibition of wall paintings and easel paintings.

During the four summer seasons from 2002 to 2005, Ovchinnikov created about a hundred murals on the walls of city buildings, fences and boarded-up windows in Borovsk. The subjects include images of famous countrymen, historical events and genre scenes. Many of the murals are accompanied by poems by his fourth wife, the writer and poetess Elvira Chastikova.

Ovchinnikov's recognition and creative method

In 2018, on the occasion of Ovchinnikov's 80th birthday, the Museum of Russian Folk and Naive Art in Moscow opened his author's exhibition, the artist presented 40 paintings, as well as 30 photographs of wall paintings. In addition, works in the street art genre specially invented by Ovchinnikov called "windows" were additionally shown - 15 works.

One of the artist's most famous art objects was Ovchinnikov's Spaceship, a 10-meter concrete cylinder with images of outstanding space scientists, which he turned into a "Space Ark" on the site of an abandoned sewage treatment plant.

The artist's creative method was often compared to street art, calling it Borovsky's "Banksy", but he himself adhered to his own artistic style.

Death

The artist died on May 13 in Borovsk. He died after a long illness at the age of 89. Ovchinnikov left a significant artistic legacy that influenced the cultural image of the city and its perception in Russia.