13 famous Ukrainian artists

How many famous Ukrainian artists are you aware of? Over the couple of past centuries, the world has seen the magnificent artworks of our countrymen. The kings acquired them for private collections, and foreign masters copied them in every possible way. The names of these great creators will now be known to you, too.

Zinaida Serebryakova

"Girl with a candle", Serebryakova Zinaida

The creative professional activity of family members instilled a love of painting in Serebryakova from childhood. The hereditary artist transferred the comfort of the hearth to her artworks. She painted surprisingly warm portraits of loved ones, as well as peasant landscapes.

Warmth is immediately felt when looking at "Girl with a Candle". It is noteworthy that the candle itself is not visible, but the light illuminating the heroine's face and white nightie, a gentle smile — make you feel the quiet calmness of a night dwelling.

Ilya Repin

"Arrest of a propagandist", Ilya Repin

Repin depicted all the shades of the revolutionary spirit of time in his immense work. Traveling around the world, he painted portraits of noble persons and common people, but all the time he returned to themes close to his homeland.

Each painting by Repin is saturated with a multifaceted and deep meaning. For example, the artwork "The Arrest of a Propagandist" was considered extremely relevant for those times. The outbursts of social activity were accompanied by violence, and such detentions became common. But if you look deeper, a tragic religious story will reveal before us ...

A peasant, who betrayed his neighbor and now is retaining him; a woman looking fearfully from another room; gendarmes collecting evidence against the one, who preached a new order and the collapse of the current government ... All these images of Repin were prompted by the biblical story of Jesus Christ arrest.

Kazimir Malevich

"Black square", Kazimir Malevich

Among the paintings of Ukrainian artists of the XIXth century, one can proudly name the famous "Black Square". One of the brightest representatives of the avant-garde, the author of such a trend as Suprematism, was born in Kiev. Malevich also spent his childhood and youth in Ukraine.

His art was fresh, radical, and most importantly, honest. Frankly speaking, he was not the first to paint the canvas in one color. But he was the first who called it what it is.

Alexandra Exter

"Town", Alexandra Exter

Ukrainian folk subjects and the philosophy of Pablo Picasso are harmoniously combined in the artworks of Alexandra Exter. Her author's direction is cubo-futurism. Bright colors appeared in the workshop of the great master thanks to her.

She also closely communicated with the aforementioned Kazimir Malevich. He finally formulated his idea of Suprematism during conversations with her. She began to create in the same direction. One of such artworks was a painting called "City".

Nikolay Pimonenko

"Hopak", Nikolai Pimonenko

This artist illustrated the works of Taras Shevchenko, skillfully depicting moonlight and river waves on canvases. He also was engaged in painting the cathedral and graphics. According to Ilya Repin, Pimonenko was “a living painter of Ukraine”.

The colorful and festive artwork "Hopak" was awarded a medal of the Society of French Artists, and later bought by the Louvre.

Mikhail Boychuk

"Prophet Ilya", Mikhail Boychuk

He painted some of the most famous paintings of the XXth century. Moreover, he founded such a trend in culture as “boychukism”. Folk art in his artworks was combined with Byzantine church art and gave rise to masterpieces of monumental painting. However, both he and other boychukists today are attributed to the executed Renaissance.

Nikolay Nedilko

"Sunflowers", Mykola Nedilko

Soon, Boychuk's followers organized the Association of Ukrainian Revolutionary Art. Nikolay Nedilko was among them. Pictures of Ukrainian landscape painters are worthy of special attention. Nikolay Nedilko is equated with Van Gogh for his mastery of color, brightness and expression. This technique is rare these days.

Andrey Kotska

"Portrait of a girl in a Hutsul outfit", Andrey Kotska

He is the most popular portrait and landscape painter in Transcarpathia. He painted mountains and people in folk costumes. He masterfully portrayed the local flavor and forever captured the uniqueness of his culture. His collection of Hutsuls' portraits deserves special attention. The rosy faces, traditional outfits and the real life of his fellow countrymen make the paintings alive and sincere.

Fyodor Manaylo

Painting by Fyodor Manailo

A teacher and painter by vocation, he created amazing paintings in the Ukrainian style. He showed the operating factories from the inside and devoted many years to decorative and monumental art. In addition, he painted a number of masterful portraits and vivid mountain landscapes.

Maria Primachenko

"Pea beast", Maria Primachenko

The representative of “naive art” amazed the public with her rich imagination. It was based on folklore and the creative nature of other family members from childhood. The fantastic creations in her works are equally amazing and close to everyone, and the basis of the composition is often bold colors.

She wrote her most famous "Pea Beast" already in her seventh decade. It is surrounded by sunlight and flowers, and it itself looks like a flower. Its facial expression is friendly and curious, and it seems to be alive.

Alexander Murashko

"Girl in a red hat", Alexander Murashko

Portraits are of particular attention among the famous paintings of Ukrainian artists. Alexander Murashko was a famous portrait painter who worked in the direction of French impressionism. His artworks were in demand among royal families and exhibited in Europe on several occasions. Also, he had a hand in founding the Ukrainian Academy of Art.

Mikhail Dmitrenko

"Girl in national clothes", Mikhail Dmitrenko

Ukrainian painting of the XXth century adorns the walls of US churches thanks to him. Many Ukrainian cathedrals are painted by his hand to this day. Some artworks wandered around the world exhibitions. During the difficult post-war period, Mikhail Dmitrenko, together with several comrades, organized the Union of Ukrainian Fine Artists.

Sofia Levitskaya

"Guardian angel", Sofia Levitskaya

Some Ukrainian artists of the XIXth century are better known abroad than at home. French history will forever remember the graphic artist Sofia Levitskaya, while you will not find any of her artworks in our museums.

Although, this is not entirely fair, since she has made her contribution to our culture. French people were able to read “Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka” in their native language thanks to her. The translation is accompanied by her own illustrations.

Summary

Many Ukrainian artists of the past centuries are very popular abroad, while we have not even heard of them. Now you can take a better look at Ukrainian painting and understand, that it is a huge and priceless cultural heritage.

Get to know more about the artworks of these masters. It is a useful insight into history and a deep source of inspiration.