Exhibition “Reflections”

The Reflections exhibition presents impressive images and craftsmanship,  works of the Moscow animal artist Sergei Stroganov. The exhibition is based on magnificent illustrations for the most famous fables of Aesop and La Fontaine, often used animals and birds as characters, allegorically transferring to them the actions and vices of people, due to the special color, richness and rhythm of their works. All works, presented at the exhibition, made exclusively in pencil, some of which are presented in the currently fashionable direction – hyperrealism.

Pencil drawing is one of the oldest forms of art. Drawing with a pencil has always required from the artist not only all his talent, as a draftsman, but also understanding that, how to use a pencil to illustrate selected objects.  

Mostly, artists use a pencil only to create sketches for subsequent work., rarely does a pencil become basic, and even less often the only instrument in the hands of the artist. It's not so easy to draw a picture with a pencil. It takes even more time and effort., rather than painting a picture with other visual materials. But the realization of the artist's intention becomes even more difficult., when he starts drawing animals in pencil.

Animalistics, as a special genre in the visual arts,  combines both natural science, and artistic beginnings. The main task of the animalist can be both the accuracy of the image of the animal, and artistic characteristics, including decorative expression or endowing animals with human traits, actions and experiences.

 Sergei Stroganov's characters seem to float in the air, being out of time and space, like the brilliant works of Aesop and La Fontaine themselves, whose creations have been captivating readers for so many centuries with their accuracy and unbridled imagination. The artist's works are just as laconic, like the texts themselves and the language of Aesop, and at the same time, just as lyrical and spiritual, like La Fontaine's fables. The heroes of his works exist as if in two spaces - and by themselves, being representatives of the animal world, and, at the same time,  as characters of a work. Both the artist managed to perform in a very balanced way..

His works are amazing in their scope and format, a striking example of modern pencil art. They are so photo realistic and unique., that most people, when watching them for the first time, hardly believe, that these drawings were made only in pencil. Amazing technique,  detailing, scrupulousness and accurate understanding of the illustrated material allowed to create an amazing in its scale gallery of unforgettable images and plots, founded, basically, on literary material.  

Using the storyline of the works, artist, in the same time,  focuses not so much on what is happening, how many fables of Aesop and La Fontaine are on the characters themselves, conveying an amazingly enchanting image of the animals themselves, without enriching them with any elements of nature, neither interiors, forcing to concentrate on the main thing, discarding irrelevant details.

The artist presents short, entertaining stories, carrying a certain moral lesson at the will of the authors of fables. They feature amazingly beautiful and graceful characters from fables. These are animals and birds, contrary to logic, foundations and laws of nature, caught up together, thanks to the greatest talent and creative inspiration of the brilliant fabulists of the past - Aesop, who lived in 600 years BC and Jean de La Fontaine, creatively reworked the legacy of Aesop in the middle of the 17th century.

For all the plausibility and even hyperrealistic images of animals, artist, still subtle, but without any irony, caricature or convention, endows them with emotions that are by their very nature lacking. His characters are also skeptical and pessimistic.,  as well as frankly conditional characters of Aesop. And at the same time, they are endowed with the beauty of La Fontaine's poetic introductions and digressions..

The exhibition presents an opportunity not only to plunge into the enchanting world of animals through the artist's pencil drawing, which itself is infinitely varied and colorful,  but also to get in touch with the creations of the greatest masters of the word of the past, won fame, in particular, and that, that their main characters were animals.

The works presented at the exhibition also captivate with their special magically bewitching and positive-emotional energy, each of which has amazingly incredible love, respect and dedication to nature, which is reflected in the work of Sergei Stroganov, who created such vivid animalistic accurate, artistically designed, talentedly executed and literary verified images.

Animal artist Sergei Stroganov was born 23 October 1982 years in the city of Kirzhach, Vladimir region, where he spent his childhood and youth, already then getting carried away with drawing, attending art school. He is especially good at work., made with pencil and ink. This marked the beginning of the realization of his creative potential precisely in this direction of art - pencil animalistic graphics.. Over the years he has honed his skills and with 2010 of the year is happy to start drawing animals with colored pencils.

IN 2013 year, his works take first place at the XIV international exhibition-competition of contemporary art “Russian Arts Week” in nomination: “Experimental graphics. Animalistics”. IN 2014 year he participates in the Art Week in Portugal and in the nomination “Academic graphics. Picture” ranks second.

The exhibition has already been exhibited at the Rybinsk Museum- nature reserve, Kislovodsk Museum “Fortress”, Stavropol Museum of Fine Arts, Voronezh Art Museum named after. I.N. Kramsky, Oryol Museum of Fine Arts.

IN 2016 year exhibition “Reflections” receives recognition from the Russian Academy of Arts.

Link to download the exhibition presentationPresentation