Nikas Safronov all pictures. A talented artist or a successful art businessman: inimitable portraits of Nikas Safronov

24.04.2019

A more successful and popular artist than Nikas Safronov, modern Russia does not know. His name has not left the pages of gossip columns of glossy magazines for decades. The legends about the “death grip” of the outstanding businessman, about the enchanting energy, about the remarkable ingenuity that made Nikas famous and revered in record time are simply stunning.

Popularity, even if scandalous, came to Nikas in the early 90s of the last century, when he began working on a series of portraits of domestic and foreign famous people. Subsequently, this series was called “River of Time”.

Idealizing and embellishing the familiar but popular faces of his contemporaries, the artist developed his own romantic style, echoing Flemish school Renaissance painting. Using modern technologies, the painter masterfully managed to fill his paintings with the spirit of history. Famous personalities, “frozen” on canvas in unusual images, appear before the viewer as heroes of the plots antique paintings in costumes from bygone eras.

On paintings Presidents and high-ranking officials of Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, America, ruling monarchs, celebrities of the cinema and music world are captured.

The bulk of the artist’s paintings are kept in museums around the world and private collections in Russia and abroad among political and cultural stars such as Sophia Loren, Pierre Cardin, Alain Delon, Madonna, Alla Pugacheva, Montserrat Caballe, Philip Kirkorov, Leonardo DiCaprio, Nikita Mikhalkov and many others.

Amazing psychological portraits built on symbols, metaphors, subtle associations, interweavings historical eras, immerse the viewer in a fantastic space of feelings and emotional experiences.

The provocative works of Nikas Safronov - half people, half cats, half dogs - are completely in the spirit of the current time, and in the spirit of the work of the most extraordinary master. His life and his work are one continuous web of contradictions.

“He has enormous imagination and unearthly creative energy. I think that his soul was amazed by the existence of the twentieth century, combining the search for God and blasphemy, faith and unbelief, romanticism and a tough look at fashion.”“This is how one of the most famous Russian artists Ilya Glazunov once spoke about Nikas Safronov.

From the series of portraits "cat people". | Photo: fishki.net

Despite the polar opinions of critics, Nikas Safronov’s works are in great demand. His paintings have occupied a worthy place at major domestic and foreign exhibitions for more than 30 years; about 800 paintings have been purchased by collectors and stored in museums and private collections. Is this confirmation that Nikas is one of the most famous artists of our time, who earned worldwide recognition during his lifetime?

Sometimes even about the most famous artists you discover something new for yourself. On our website there is a story about the unknown Ivanp Shishkin -.

On one of the days of the May holidays, we decided to visit the Ryazan State Regional Art Museum named after. I. P. Pozhalostina (54°37′39″N, 39°45′4″E (54.627373, 39.751033)).

The purpose of our visit is to get acquainted with Nikas Safronov’s personal exhibition “Favorites”...

Having paid 300 rubles. behind admission ticket and 150 rub. For the right to take photographs, before starting to examine the exhibition, we carefully examined the photographs posted in the museum foyer.

Their selection was made in such a way as to convey to visitors to the exhibition that this is not an ordinary artist, but “a person close to...”

However, all this does not directly relate to creativity, and therefore we go up to the second floor of the museum and find ourselves in the halls where selected works by Nikas Safronov are presented. At the entrance to the exhibition there is a poster with information about the artist’s biographical information.

From here we learn that Nikas Safronov was born in 1956 in Ulyanovsk into the family of a retired military man. While studying at school, he became interested in drawing, which at first he did not consider serious for himself. After graduating from the 8th grade of secondary school, Nikas enters the Odessa Naval School. It is here that he realizes that being creative will open up more opportunities for him than being a sailor, and after some thought (a year of study) he takes the documents from the school. This is followed by moving to Rostov-on-Don and studying at the Rostov Art School. M.B. Grekov, which he was unable to complete due to being called up for military service in the army (in the missile forces). After demobilization, Nikas moves to Panevezys (his mother’s homeland) and gets a job as a theater designer. According to WIKIPEDIA Safronov from 1978 to 1982. studied at the State art institute Lithuanian SSR at the Faculty of Design, and then moved to Moscow, where he studied psychology at the Moscow State University of Technology and Management. According to the information posted on the poster, Nikas “graduated from the Surikov Institute and remained in Moscow forever.” Small discrepancies in biography are quite commonplace, so we will not focus on these points. Nikas Safronov's first personal exhibition took place in 1978 in Panevezys. After this event, he became known as "a vibrant surrealist, portrait painter and experimenter." Feeling a constant need for self-improvement, Nikas travels a lot around the world, studies the techniques of the Great Masters of the past, and popularizes his creativity. He became widely known for his series of psychological portraits of his contemporaries, which experts consider to be the best modern achievements in this genre. The desire for paintings as works of imagination never left Nikas, and after lengthy research and generalizations of the results of his work, he created his own direction - Dream Vision (classical painting + imagination, intuition and subconscious of unconscious sensations), which quickly found its fans in many countries of the world.

Nikas Safronov is an Honored Artist of the Russian Federation, winner of many public titles and awards. Engaged in social and charitable activities.

Well, now let’s return directly to the exhibition of the master’s works. In Ryazan art museum decided to conduct free excursions for visitors to the exhibition at 12.00, 14.00 and 16.00. Due to the fact that we arrived at the museum around 14.00, we found ourselves right in the thick of things - there were so many admirers of Safronov’s work that it turned out to be impossible to simultaneously listen to the guide and photograph the exhibits. Therefore, when the masses followed the guide to the right,

we moved in the opposite direction - to the left, where no one bothered us to calmly, without fuss, examine the artist’s canvases.

And here, in fact, he himself is in front of us - “A revived bas-relief. Self-portrait from the “River of Time” series, 2012.

The following works by Nikas, presented in Ryazan, also “flow” into the “River of Time”:

- “Saint Nicole” (Nicole Kidman) 2011,

- “Rutger Hauer” (2016) and “Portrait of Mikhail Kozakov” (2006);

- “Portrait of Lev Durov” (2005) and “From Ancient Times... Yuri Nikulin” (2011);

- “Viktor Sukhorukov” (2013) and “Larisa Shepitko” (1978);

- “Leonid Filatov” (2000) and “Beauty of the Day against the backdrop of Paris, or Catherine Deneuve in character” (2009);

- “David Bowie” (2009) and “A View from the Depths of Russian History”

Having passed by the “ordinary” painting “Spring in Poltava. Shishaki”,

we find ourselves outside the framework of reality and find ourselves in the world of fantasies and thoughts from the hidden corners of the author’s brain:

- “In search of the meaning of life in the desert of thoughts” (2009);

- “The Road Home” (2007):

- “The Face of Fortune” (2012);

- “The Night Mystery of the Lost City of Machu Picchu” (2012);

- “The Girl from the Sea, or a Premonition of the Holiday” (2012)...

The next part of the exhibition is dedicated to the “cat theme”. Nikas Safronov has quite a lot of works related to the “Cat People” series (they say that the author himself does not have much love for these animals, which cannot be said about his sister, for whom he decided to take this step. Initially, these were cat women (and here Gogol’s works helped the artist), and then the cat’s faces turned out to be connected to male bodies).

"Cat People" in Ryazan were represented by the following works:

- “Visiting Europe” (2012), “A Thoughtful Look into the Future” (2013);

- “A cat’s gaze from time immemorial” (1990), “English aristocrat XVI century" (2012);

- “Rising to Khalsa” (2012), “Gogol’s character, but much more serious” (2012);

- “Hero of the Egyptian Campaigns” (2013), “Woman of the Harem, or Memories of a Beloved” (2013)...

"Having finished" with the "cats" we fall into the "paws" of the author's style " Dream Vision"...

- “The Magic of the Wind, or the Mysterious Ball” (2008);

- "Spring" (2012);

- “Summer day in France against the backdrop of a castle” (2011) (they say that this is exactly the castle that Safronov wanted to buy, but then something didn’t work out...);

- "The Secret of House B." (2012) (in in this case“B” is Boris Berezovsky, and the canvas depicts his English house, in which the oligarch met his “mysterious” death). The next picture is also shrouded in mystery: “A mysterious house against the backdrop of a mysterious figure, illuminated by the evening rays of the sun” (2005).

- “Crystal people against the background of crystal balls” (2012).

The continuation of the main works of the new direction in art from Nikas Safronov is located in the next (very small) room, where now, due to the presence of a free guide, there is no crowd.

We have no choice but to finish watching that part of the exhibition that is “free from the above-mentioned shortcomings”...

Before us is “May morning in the forest, or a vision during a walk” (2010),

and this is “Gondola Ride” (2011)...

“Still Life with Fruit” (2004) (although it’s hard to see anything here...."),

"Portrait of Nastassja Kinski", next to which is "Angel of Light" (2015).

Before us is "...The Holy Spirit..." (2012) presented by Nikas Safronov.

The next painting is called “Mirage, or the dream of a maiden coming eight times” (2014).

The guide drew attention to this painting Special attention visitors to the exhibition, because "A Summer Dream of the Swiss Mountains, or Memories of Van Gogh" (2015) can fulfill all your desires...

"Christmas Morning" (2014),

"Summer walk after the rain" (2014),

"Morning Gondola Ride"

"Italy. Afternoon" (2013),

and, finally, the small hall became free of grateful listeners....

We find ourselves in captivity again Dream Vision.

"Two Elements" (2010),

"Overcoming" (2011),

"Freedom of flight, gained through captivity" (2005),

“Balls of Wishes in Magic Branches” (2010) (five white balls represent the author’s five wishes fulfilled),

"From the life of the little mermaid" (2010),

"Children's pranks" (2012),

"Autumn, going into winter with spring and summer" (2012), "The Vilnius Ghost of Gediminas" (2011),

"Inspiration" (2008), "Morning Appearance of an Angel in the Arkhangelsk Palace" (2012),

“The Unseeing One, or Knighted” (2007), “Holiday Pie” (2012).

The next painting belongs to the series “From the history of the spiritual world” - “The Church of St. Anne”.

Continuing our acquaintance with the selected works of Nikas Safronov, we linger at the paintings “An Angel’s Look into the Past and Future” (2003), “Woody Allen” (2010),

"Clint Eastwood" (1993)...

The “Favorites” collection also includes a small gallery of drawings (portraits of N. Noskov, Schema-Archimandrite Iliya, A. Tsekalo, M.T. Kalashnikov, Yu. Stoyanov, etc.).

Well, Safronov’s next work, “Ghost from the Past,” is shrouded in real mysticism. The point is this: at one time Nikas made a portrait of a young man (photo on the left), who died tragically at the age of 13 (Nikas tried to imagine what he would be like at a more mature age). However, after some time, another image suddenly began to appear on the back side of the canvas (photo on the right).... Miracles and that’s all...

This is where our acquaintance with the work of Nikas Safronov (presented in Ryazan) comes to an end. This is not the first time that the artist has exhibited in this city, and as knowledgeable people say, the previous exhibition was more impressive in terms of the works presented. If we talk in general about the artist’s work, then the attitude towards him (as an amateur in this field) is ambiguous and contradictory. On the one hand, some works “force” you to linger near them (although there are few such paintings in this exhibition), you pass by others without stopping, and still others resemble variants children's creativity. Perhaps professionals think differently...

"Artist" scammer Safronov makes paintings in Photoshop

The fraudulent scheme is taken from "Kings and Cabbages" by O. Henry

I am alone famous friend painted a portrait, he made postcards from it and once went to Israel. There, a girl came up to him for an autograph and saw who the author of the portrait was. “So we study Safronov like a classic at school.” He asks her: “Which other Russian are you studying?” She says: "Picasso and Dali." I was pleased to hear this. It’s good, of course, when you are Safin’s daughter, your name is Alsou and they help you in your creativity. I didn't have that. My path is thorny. (From an interview with Nikas Safronov.)

Sadalsky has a funny article on his blog (not like himself, as I understand it) about the formation and creative path phenomenon called Nikas Safronov. Actually, it doesn’t say anything particularly new - and it’s been known for so long what this “artist” is like. [with famous "moral principles"- Ruspres] and how he climbed into all sorts of holes of the powerful of this world without soap.

By the way, as far as I remember, Luzhkov’s brethren greatly welcomed this vulgar fellow. Well, every Shantsev loved it when they, big-faced ones, were depicted as illustrious princes or brilliant courtiers.

And one knowledgeable person told me that Safronov was almost the first to bring a printer that prints on canvas to Moscow. At one time, such a thing cost several tens of thousands of dollars. But it paid off quickly for him: Nikas took paintings by old masters in Photoshop, sculpted some mug in place of a face Abramovich, printed it out - and the “portrait” is ready. He handed these portraits strong of the world this, trying to create a trend of “ordering a portrait from Safronov,” and, it seems, he actually began to receive some orders. And then it’s a simple matter: I took a photo, processed it in Photoshop with some artistic filters and printed it out.

Portrait of Roman Abramovich

By the way, then these printers became much cheaper and everyone began to use them. Approximately 90% of the paintings sold at various opening days in Moscow are printed, not painted.

I also remember that I was quite amused by the persistence with which Safronov calls himself the “Russian Salvador Dali” - with approximately the same insistence with which Sasha Kuritsyn calls himself the “Russian Schwarzenegger”. [...]

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Wiring in the image of the “Russian Salvador Dali”

The story of the artist Nikos Safronov's enrichment

Recently, a friend of mine invited me to the opening of his furniture store in the center of Moscow. I couldn't help but go. And I was not at all surprised to meet my old friend the artist Safronov there.

We met in the early 90s. My friends then opened a casino and held concerts there on Fridays to attract the public. The concert was followed by a buffet reception. The artist Safronov was a regular visitor to free buffets and parties (all over Moscow). An imposing man in an invariable black jacket attracted everyone's attention, despite the touch of a certain homelessness and provincialism. The artist ingratiatingly gave those around him booklets, postcards and other pieces of paper with reproductions of his works, and once came with bottles of Safronovka vodka, with his face on the label. True, he didn’t give me vodka, he just showed it. He often appeared with his friends, for example, the famous sorcerer Yuri Longo. Yura (who died so suddenly 5 years ago) was remembered as a very bright person, he amazed with accurate prophecies, for which I (an archskeptic) have never found a sensible explanation to this day. I don’t remember which of Safronov’s friends called him Kolkas, Kolyas, and even Kolyaska, but I remember these humorous names. That's what I'll call him.

Let's return to the furniture store in our time. Kolyas Safronov set up a projector and showed slides of his work on the back wall of an Italian wardrobe. My friend, a furniture maker, seeing my surprise, explained that Safronov promised to attract a rich audience, but charges very little for his show. By the way, he asked me to write a review. I promised in the heat of the moment. Time has passed, the promise must be fulfilled, but not to write about furniture store, so I decided to write about the work of Kolyaska Safronov.

First of all, I went to his official website, where I learned that “Over the years, only one Russian painter was able to achieve worldwide recognition,” “... an entry in the World Book of Knowledge about entering... into 100 best artists XX-XXI centuries seems to be a meager addition to career success Russian painter, quietly working in various genres..." and so on and so forth... But amazingly, Yandex did not give a single one!!! links to the query “world book of knowledge”. Yes, how much more insignificant is such an addition... As for the “various genres” in which Colcas “calmly” works, we can safely say that never (!), in any time and in any people, there has never been an artist which would work in almost all conceivable and inconceivable genres. Safronov is the only one! That’s why, apparently, he’s “calm.” On the same website we read that “Ordering and buying a painting by a master will not be difficult. A simplified system for receiving orders and performing work using photographs...” Of course, as long as there are customers, there is no need to worry too much.

I also surfed the Internet. Conflicting information. For example, in the article ( TVNZ dated 04/08/2011) it is written: “Safronov quickly said that he remembers his Ulyanovsk childhood... He mentioned his Lithuanian mother, Russian father, infidel blacks who are neither Orthodox nor Catholic.” And on Wikipedia we read: “Father - Stepan Grigorievich Safronov (Erzyan by nationality). Mother - Safronova Anna Fedorovna, a native of the city of Panevezys. Do you remember something similar? “Mother is Russian, and father is a lawyer”? This is some kind of nonsense. And one more thing: all the sites claim that Safronov was born in Ulyanovsk in 1956. And where did the “infidel blacks” in Ulyanovsk childhood come from then? Another mystery. Therefore, I decided that it would be better to tell you three (only three!) true and reliable stories about the “only internationally recognized” Russian artist Safronov.

Story one. Becoming

They say that his friend Yuri Longo told Safronov this ingenious scheme, who in turn read it from some old American author (most likely from O. Henry).

The first stage: you need to take photographs (for example, from magazines) of several famous people and paint their portraits. Any PTE student (Safronov studied at the Rostov Art School from 1973 to 1975), even a C student, can easily do this. (The USSR had the strongest education! They could teach any dunce and mediocrity a craft). Then the finished portrait, for example, of the Queen of England must be send directly to her, darling, to her main residence - Buckingham Palace in Westminster. Finding the address is not a problem. They, the English, are known to be polite people and therefore will definitely send you a reply letter: “Thank you, they say, Kolyas for the portrait, etc.” In exactly the same way you send portraits to the President of the United States, the President of Russia (this is more important!) and all sorts of Sophia Laurens and Alla Pugachevs. Let not all of them, but many will send response letters of gratitude. So they have, they have cultured people accepted.

Portrait of Vladimir Putin

The second stage: here you have to spend a little, but if you don’t invest money, you won’t earn money. A personalized album with reproductions of these portrait paintings is being published. Under each picture it is written, for example: “Portrait of the Queen of England. Kept in the personal collection of the Queen of England. Hangs in the portrait gallery of English kings at Buckingham Palace." Or: “Portrait of Roman Abramovich. It is kept in the personal collection of Roman Abramovich and is mandatory tattooed on the back (or below) of every Chelsea football player. And so on.

The third stage: you need to show this album to potential customers, commenting on the pictures in the correct discourse. Who is the potential customer for Safronov’s portrait in modern Russia? A thieving official or a criminal businessman, i.e. a real sucker! (Another one will not go to Kolyas). His education is at the appropriate level. He doesn’t know any artists other than Shishkin and Repin. Yes, and he knows those from the cover of “Native Speech” for first grade Soviet school. This sucker should be poked in the face with a little album with a portrait of the Queen of England. Those who are especially distrustful may also have the present thank you letter from the royal chancellery (that's where it came in handy!) show. Tell about the reception at Buckingham Palace, how the queen cried with happiness when she saw Safronov, how she threw herself on his neck with kisses, etc. You need to explain to the client that he is no worse than the queen, which means he should have a portrait painted by Kolyaska in his house on Rublyovka Safronov. It is hoped that the client will never know that the artist Safronov has never even laid eyes on the Queen of England (as well as others whose portraits he painted).

Price? Today it has already risen to 50 thousand dollars for a portrait “with handles” and up to 40 thousand “without handles”. Kolyashkis calls them “handles” human hands, which are as difficult to write (the layout is the same) as the face. But real boys, obviously, always order “with handles.”

"With handles." Portrait of Tina Kandelaki

Evil tongues claim that today Safronov’s portraits are painted by “black artists” (maybe from his Ulyanovsk childhood?), and not by himself. This is for the better - the quality of work has become higher. But a real “tough guy” doesn’t have to work - just count money.

This primitive and ancient fraudulent scheme still works to this day. Dare and try, young artists, however, it is not at all necessary to be an artist here. I wish you success!

The second story. Creativity flourishes

This story was told in big company(where I happened to be) Andrei Makarevich - leader of the rock group “Time Machine”. Here is the story in brief: “One day the artist Safronov called me (where did he get the phone?) and said that he would come to my house (how did he find out the address?) and give me a portrait. A portrait painted by him, and in the portrait, as you understand, I am depicted. I answer that I don’t need the portrait and ask him never to call me again. A few days later I leave the house, and he is already waiting for me at the gate. And the portrait, packed in thick paper, bothers me. A gift for your favorite singer. Well, you can’t offend a person, I took the portrait. I threw it straight into the attic without unpacking it. There he lies. I have never seen this portrait and I don’t want to see it. And, you friends, if you ever come across my portrait in Safronov’s album, then remember that not only did I not pose for Safronov, but I don’t really know him either.”

Well, as an addition: I once met my old friend, a famous art critic, and he laughed: “My friend called me here.” Alexander Sergeevich Sokolov(Minister of Culture of Russia) and asks what he should do with his portrait, which was sent from the artist Safronov. I answer: never, Alexander Sergeevich, tell anyone about this. This is not appropriate. In general, it is indecent to mention Safronov’s name in public. He doesn't shake hands. Destroy the portrait or hide it so that no one, God forbid, sees it. And then about yours artistic taste there will be a preconceived opinion. And this, as the Minister of Culture, can be very harmful to you.”

Story three. Liquidity

For 15 years now, the Russian Antique Salon, the largest antique fair in Russia, has been held in Moscow, at the Central House of Artists, twice a year. At the opening of the salon, the usual gathering of interested parties gathers, which has already become an obligatory and traditional phenomenon of the Moscow social life. A couple of years ago, at the opening of another salon, I was surprised to see a painting by Safronov in one of my gallery owners’ acquaintances. The painting depicted a portrait Kristina Orbakaite. I asked a friend why he was selling a completely inappropriate product. This is not an antique. The gallery owner told me a story about how he bought, on occasion, a certain set of antique objects. The seller sold only the whole thing, wholesale and “locomotive” attached this painting by Safronov to the antique pile. I had to buy it.

"Portrait" of Kristina Orbakaite with a rat - the pinnacle of Safronov's idiocy

Today, at the opening of the salon there should be Alla Pugacheva, - he told me, - So I hung the picture in the most visible place. Suddenly his eyes lit up, “The Lord heard my prayers,” he whispered. I looked back. Incredibly, Alla Borisovna herself approached us with a regal step, without taking her eyes off the portrait. I quote below verbatim:

- How much is it, daughter?

“Alla Borisovna,” the inspired seller jabbered, “I know for sure that Christina paid 50 thousand dollars for this portrait.” I got it on occasion and it was very expensive. Only out of respect for you, being your most ardent fan and admirer, I ask for only 10 thousand.

Alla Borisovna smiled:

- Do you want something?

It doesn’t matter how this story ended, it is important that not a single painting by Safronov has ever been sold at any serious auction. Because they are absolutely not liquid! Regardless of the genre. No one can sell Safronov’s work, except himself, of course.

Maybe this has something to do with the current state of our country? Only scammers thrive. Pseudo-artists, pseudo-singers, pseudo-intelligence officers, pseudo-businessmen, pseudo-ministers and even pseudo...

[Online diary draco_argento, 10/04/2011, “The only internationally recognized Russian artist": Nikas Safronov NEVER studied at the Rostov Art School. He attended preparatory courses at the Russian Art University. - Insert K.ru]

Vasily Chapaer

Source: apn.ru, 10/04/2011,

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"Both Sophia Loren and Spielberg wanted to rape me..."

Around the paintings of Nikas Safronov, among which there are ceremonial portrait President of the Russian Federation, a huge scandal erupts: buyers of paintings suddenly began to discover that they had been sold hack work. A reproduction of the portrait of Vladimir Putin by Safronov now hangs in the offices of many Russian officials, both in Moscow and in other cities and villages. And its picturesque prototype was sold some time ago. The portrait was bought by our fellow countryman, the former Minister of Internal Affairs of Russia, and now co-owner of the resort in Undory Andrey Dunaev. He is a rich man, he collects a collection of paintings, for which he even goes to auctions in London. Dunaev paid several thousand dollars for a portrait of Putin. When I figured it out, I realized that it was consumer goods. The picture was painted using computer technology. A photograph is taken, stored in the computer's memory, then it is corrected on the display (wrinkles are removed, circles under the eyes, if any, etc.) and displayed on canvas. Here the portrait is painted with paints. All work, as Nikas Safronov’s representative Alexander Gaisin says, takes no more than three hours.

Upon learning this, Dunaev became furious. And then rumors also appeared that under the guise of Safronov’s paintings, paintings by other artists little known to the public were being sold, that is, fakes. A couple of weeks ago the story took a detective turn.

Safronov’s representative, Gaisin, mentioned above, prepared traveling exhibition works by Nikas. In the room where Gaisin lived during his visits to Moscow, he collected about three dozen paintings. One day the paintings disappeared. According to Alexander Gaisin, his money, passport, two passbooks and documents, including contracts with the artist, disappeared along with them. Having discovered the loss, the victim wrote a statement to the Lefortovo District Department of Internal Affairs of Moscow. The application was accepted for processing. A week later, Gaysin came to the police department and learned that Nikas had accused him of forging paintings and stealing slides with reproductions. The artist sent a statement about this to the same police department. They began to interrogate Gaisin. He had almost no documents with him; they had been stolen. He guessed who stole the paintings and papers: a man from Nikas’ circle.

Apparently, the calculation was that I had nothing left and could be taken with bare hands,” Alexander Gaisin told the SK correspondent, “but, thank God, my wife is a lawyer. She long ago advised me to make copies of documents and store them in Ulyanovsk.

Having escaped from the hands of the Moscow investigators, Gaisin came home, made copies of the papers and sent them to the Lefortovo District Department of Internal Affairs. In his envelope, a lot of interesting things went to Moscow, signed by Nikas himself. For example, judging by the documents, forgeries of paintings were prepared not only with Safronov’s knowledge, but also with his approval. The papers also contain a copy of the purchase and sale agreement between Safronov and Gaisin for slides. The buyer paid 130 thousand rubles for them. There is also a secret agreement between him and the artist in the safe of Nikas’s representative. Gaisin is keeping its essence secret for now, but says that when the public finds out, it will be horrified, especially if it remembers that N.S. Safronov is an honorary citizen of Ulyanovsk and an honorary professor at Ulyanovsk State University.

Why Nikas (in the world - Nikolai Stepanovich) decided to hand over Gaisin to the authorities, the latter has not yet understood. They grew up together. Gysin put a lot of effort into making his friend famous and his paintings salable. I tolerated his antics. Ulyanovsk residents remember how a few months ago Safronov publicly hit Gaisin at the opening of an exhibition at Ulyanovsk State University for placing a still-dry portrait of Vladimir Shamanov on something and almost ruining it. By the way, this portrait, says Alexander Gaisin, was made using the same technology and was painted not in six months, as the newspapers claimed, but in three hours.

Gaisin does not rule out that when his friend found out about the counterfeiting scandal, he might have come up with the idea of blaming everything on the representative. He is capable of this, says Gysin. Alexander Grigorievich does not yet know how the conflict will turn out. While waiting for the outcome, he writes a fiction story in which he introduces Nikas under the name of Michael Kuzovatkin. Fortunately, the hero has been in front of the author’s eyes all his life. When asked what explains Nikas’s tilt towards those hanging anywhere in his paintings female breasts and asses, Gysin says: “I don’t know, psyche, probably.”

Meanwhile, in Safronov-Kuzovatkin’s homeland, his name continues to be immortalized. Through Shamanov they petition to award Nikolai Stepanovich the Order of Friendship of Peoples. And in Dimitrovgrad they plan to install his bust and name a technical lyceum after him. It was not reported which image of the maestro would be taken as a model for the monument. As a sponsorship, we publish one of his photographs. After the city on Cheremshan, the “sample” can be repeated before entering the Ulyanovsk high school No. 65, whose leadership has already achieved assignment to its educational institution artist's name. In the photo, however, he is without pants, but this does not bother him; he loves being photographed like that. We might not have given this photo, but we consider its publication a public benefit. important matter: children in schools and lyceums have the right to know what the idol is and what it professes, which teachers and older comrades teach them to worship. And he professes something that he himself beautifully calls “inner freedom.” Six years ago, a journalist from one of the Ulyanovsk newspapers told in her publication how she interviewed the painter at the Venets Hotel. Having finished the conversation, the girl stood up, “but suddenly,” she writes in her article, “with one throw Nikas throws me onto the bed on which he had just been sitting. I quickly jumped up and pushed him away from me, asking what happened to him.” want you".

The journalist ran out into the hotel corridor, Safronov ran after her and, asking for forgiveness, muttered: “Both Sophia Loren and Spielberg wanted to rape me...”

In art, the notorious “inner freedom” has resulted in hackwork and tricks with other people’s paintings. “He wants to make me out to be a scoundrel,” Alexander Gaisin is indignant, “but if I’m a scoundrel, who then is he, this man, without whose signature I didn’t take even half a step?!”

Sergey Polenov

Source: "Simbirsk Courier", 12/14/2002

****

“He was in a psychiatric hospital” from the army, became an “informer” for the OBKhSS, “fell in love” to order with the ladies who paid his friend, the sorcerer Longo, for a “love spell”

The former producer of our fellow countryman, the fashionable metropolitan artist Nikas Safronov, Alexander Gaisin, wrote a book of scandalous memories about him. He introduced excerpts from the yet unpublished work only to SHOK readers. The reason is that Safronov recently turned 50 years old.

Most people only know the “front facade” of Nikas, says Gaysin. — Prince, holder of orders, professor, philanthropist, talented painter, “Russian Salvador Dali,” Putin’s favorite artist. All this is a legend that Safronov himself created around himself. I’ve known him for half his life and I’m telling you for sure: Nikas, at his core, is a common person in beautiful packaging. In many interviews he claims that he was chosen by God. But he is silent, as many years ago in a whole village he took down icons from old women...

- Your memories - memoirs or piece of art?

- This fiction story, although the personality of the main character is completely based on Nikas. I did not embellish or invent a single fact of his biography.

Became an informer for the OBKhSS

From art school In Rostov, Nikas was kicked out for immorality - he began sleeping with an elderly teacher. The military registration and enlistment office was already waiting for him: Safronov was sent to serve in the missile forces in Latvia.

“He decided to play like a fool. Fortunately, before mobilization (as if I sensed that it would be necessary), I memorized a small brochure about various forms mental illness,” recalls Gysin. “This is where my unclaimed acting skills came in handy.”

At the first aid station, he argued that he saw natural tailed devils on the white wall. The doctors chuckled. But when he announced that he would commit suicide because nuclear missiles The devil's messengers are sitting, he was hastily sent to the city. There they examined me, tried to treat me with electric shock and sedative pills, and then put me in a psychiatric hospital in Riga. In order for him to be discharged, he had to lie there for 10 days. Nikas couldn't stand it. Having learned that in the next ward some crazy person had smashed a young doctor’s head with a stool, Nikas began pounding on the locked door, demanding that he be immediately sent back to the unit, since he had recovered and wanted to fulfill his civic duty to the Motherland...”

After returning from the army, the still unknown aspiring artist Kolya Safronov took up blacksmithing. Soon he was caught in this case by his future subordinate Sasha Gaisin, who worked as an OBKhSS inspector.

“I caught him red-handed at a flea market, and, threatening him with prison time, I managed to make the future celebrity my “voluntary” assistant, or, more simply, an informer,” reveals another secret of Nikas Gaisin’s youth.

Why doesn’t Nikas recognize his “masterpieces”?

In many interviews, Safronov talks about how long he has been working on his creations. But then sometimes he doesn’t even recognize them. Why?

“Nikas is a team, not just for football, but for unpromoted artists,” answers Gaisin. - How he does it? Paintings unknown artists buys in Russia and then sells it with his signature somewhere in Germany or America. Then he buys paintings by the same poor fellows in Italy or Germany for pennies and sells them for thousands of bucks in Russia. There was such an Ulyanovsk artist Volodya Surkov. Talent! Nikas knew him and saw the paintings. I personally bought all the remaining paintings from his widow, which Nikas later sold as his own in Germany. Therefore, sometimes he comes to collectors, they show him his own paintings, and he recognizes them only when he sees his signature on them.”

Nikas's portraits of politicians and Hollywood actors brought him worldwide fame. It turns out that almost all of them were also written with the help of poor students and computer technology.

“Once I attended such a performance. Singer Anita Tsoi came to Nikas. Nikas politely sat her down in a chair, kissed her hand, and began showering her with compliments,” says the producer. “I pretended to write sketches, and at the same time I was thinking about how this singer could be used in the future with her solid connections. He knows that Tsoi’s portrait will then be made by his computer technician in an hour!

Under any pretext, giving stars and politicians their portraits is in the spirit of Nikas. Then he announces that his paintings are in the collections of great people."

Nikas' mistress smokes weed before sex

“He often used women, especially famous ones, for his advertising purposes,” writes Gysin. His book also tells about Nikas’s friendship with a famous sorcerer, in whom the attentive reader will recognize Yuri Longo, the now deceased magician.

“A decent pair of first-class magicians. So: knowing about their friendship, concerned rich Muscovites, often married, came to the famous sorcerer and literally begged him to make Nikas fall in love with them, at least for a month. They offered, of course, good bucks: sometimes up to twenty thousand dollars. The fame of the artist as a virtuoso lover spread throughout the capital's bohemia. The sorcerer kicked back for greater importance, assuring that he had a higher mission on earth. But then he couldn’t stand the woman’s tears and agreed. After that, he called Nikas and, laughing, “instructed” him to fall in love with such and such a lady for six months. The artist worked off the currency, which they then divided...”

Source: ulpressa.ru, 04/26/2006

Nikas is impressed

Several years ago, lenta.ru reported: “The artist Nikas Safronov, having seen how T-shirts with a design reproducing his portrait of Putin were being sold on Arbat and in Moscow wholesale markets, complained to the Department for Combating Economic Crimes... It turned out to be a successful marketing move for the workshop fatal: there is an indisputable violation of the copyright of the artist Safronov, which may entail punishment up to five years in prison.” And touching on the topic of copyright in a conversation with a correspondent of the Irkutsk newspaper “Number One” in the spring of this year, Nikas Safronov noted: “Of course, I also took something from the work of other painters. But there is plagiarism, and there is history and quotes - this is when, under the impression of another picture, you draw something of your own.” However, it is better to see once than to hear a hundred times. Here is one of the results of his fruitful work in the field of fine arts:

Thanks to arthorse for the clear example.

Source: Network diary deja_vu_global, 11/16/2009

The image of Peter and the Napoleon complex

I remember that one of the characters in the film based on Lev Slavin’s play “Intervention” remarked: “Everyone wants to become Napoleon! You can’t walk down the street anymore because of the flooring!” This human weakness is diligently indulged by copyists of various calibers. The point is simple: the commoner is attracted by the glory of others. For a man, it is personified by power:

And for a woman - beauty:

Yes, yes, you heard right - beauty.

Most workers in the “historical portrait to order” genre do not hide the fact that they copy from other people’s images not only the classic surroundings, but also the faces of clients:

However, they like to emphasize that they do not use Photoshop, but brushes and paints.

However, not all of them use the word “copy”. Let's say, the WM company, having posted the work below on its website, declares that (literally) “an absolutely original(!) painting based on the masterpiece was created”:

And Nikas Safronov, famous in our community, prefers to call such images “Portrait in a costume of such and such era” and, unlike all the copyists presented above, does not want to show or name the originals. Let's do it for him:

As a true professional (I mean the profession of a sales manager), Safronov strives to satisfy a whole bunch of requests from a potential client. This is both the desire to fit into other people’s epaulets and, moreover, to get onto a textbook canvas, and the desire to be among the famous models. To develop such a series, Nikas actively paints portraits of celebrities not only at their request, but also on his own initiative:

With this approach, you can remain in demand even without improving your painting technique:

Nikas Safronov, aka Nikolai Safronov (according to his passport) is a popular Russian artist with Finnish-Lithuanian horses. Nowadays, the easiest way to gain fame is in the world of music or the film industry, but famous artist It's not easy to become. Still, Nikas Safronov succeeded, partly because of his talent, but in to a greater extent because of the scandals and rumors that circulate around the artist.

Like others creative personalities Nikas Safronov is a very loving man, as evidenced by the artist’s no less intense personal life.

Height, weight, age. How old is Nikas Safronov

The name of the Russian artist Nikas Safronov has long been heard; his works differ from the mass of other artists in their surrealism and depiction of the modern with notes of antiquity. It’s not surprising that thousands of fans want to know his height, weight, and age. How old is Nikas Safronov? This year he turned 62 years old, and he still remains desirable among many of his fans. His height is 178 cm and weight is 75 kg.

Very interesting to see archival photos artist, which shows how much Nikas Safronov has changed. Photos in his youth are still popular among users on the Internet.

Biography and personal life of Nikas Safronov

No less striking than the artist’s works are the biography and personal life of Nikas Safronov.

The artist is a native of the city of Ulyanovsk, born in large family. Nikas has four older brothers and a younger sister. Father - Stepan Grigorievich Safronov, a retired military man, mother - Anna Fedorovna Safronova, a housewife. My maternal parents were from Lithuania and had Finnish-Lithuanian roots. This explains the pseudonym taken by the artist.

The first glimpses of Nikas’ talent appeared in school years, when he copied illustrations, adding his own touch, so he was in search of his own style.

The first exhibition of the artist’s original works took place in 1972, but only 6 years later attention would be paid to him, although one of the first serious exhibitions of Nikas Safronov is considered to be the one that took place in Vilnius in 1980.

After a series of works on famous personalities Many people started talking about the artist, he became popular and recognizable.

Today, the artist organizes his exhibitions far beyond the borders of Russia; he has an amazing number of awards, including those awarded for charity.

A very rich and personal life of the artist. He has many novels to his credit, as well as two official marriage and four children.

Family and children of Nikas Safronov

The family and children of Nikas Safronov are a large area for discussions. The artist tied the knot twice and cohabited several times with women of various professions and nationalities. Today he is single, but his heart is occupied. From some sources it became known that Nikas Safronov is in a relationship with a certain Tamara Shatula, who is much younger than him.

As for children, the artist has four of them: Stefano, Dmitry, Luka, Landin. All sons from different women, with most of whom Nikas did not enter into official relations.

Son of Nikas Safronov - Stefano

Nikas Safronov’s son, Stefano, appeared in the artist’s second marriage to the Italian Francesca. According to some versions, Nikas often went “to the left”, and Francesca was tired of enduring her husband’s adventures. The artist himself later admitted that he had been in love with his second wife for a long time.

As it turned out later, the woman received a decent allowance from the state as a single mother, although officially she had a husband, but the marriage was registered in Russia. In addition to the allowance, Francesca also received financial assistance from Nikas to support her son.

Son of Nikas Safronov - Dmitry

Another son of Nikas Safronov, Dmitry, was born in 1985, very little is known about him, and there is also no information about his mother. Most likely, the guy was born during the artist’s next trip to Lithuania, where he often traveled. It is in Lithuania that Nikas Safronov’s son Dmitry lives. None of the journalists were able to find out what he does, and the artist himself is in no hurry to share information regarding his son Dmitry.

Besides general information about the artist’s son, it is almost impossible to find photographs of him.

Son of Nikas Safronov - Luka Zatravkin

Unlike Dmitry, Nikas Safronov’s son, Luka Zatravkin, has repeatedly appeared in front of photographs and television cameras of the Russian media. Two years ago, he participated in one of the TV shows where Luka’s weight problems were discussed. The fact is that the young man’s weight exceeded 200 kg, which is dangerous for his health. Luka complained about the lack of attention from his father, who only occasionally helped him financially.

Nikas Safronov himself does not hide the fact that he missed a moment in raising his son, but undertakes to help him lose weight.

Son of Nikas Safronov - Landin Soroko

Most younger son Nikasa Safronova - Landin Soroko, born in 1999. The boy has already reached the age of majority, this moment lives in Australia with his mother. The woman’s identity is unknown, and no one has ever seen what the youngest of Nikas Safronov’s sons looks like.

Although the famous Russian artist is not averse to bringing his personal life to public discussion, he still does not talk much about his son Landin. Perhaps this is connected with some unpleasant story of Nikas, or maybe he simply has nothing to tell.

Nikas Safronov's ex-wife - Dragana

The first and for a long time ex-wife Nikas Safronova - Dragana, originally from Yugoslavia. The girl’s parents are wealthy, and perhaps this was the impetus for the artist’s marriage. The wedding was magnificent, twice – in Russia and in Paris. According to Nikas Safronov, he was too inexperienced and young for marriage and at that time did not understand what marriage and family were. He also said that his first wife was not the kind of girl who attracted his attention.

The artist's first marriage lasted less than a month and was dissolved on his initiative.

Nikas Safronov's ex-wife - Francesca Vendramin

The second ex-wife of Nikas Safronov is Francesca Vendramin, Italian. The affair with the girl ended in a marriage that lasted 13 years. According to the famous Russian artist, before the official separation, the couple had long stopped not only their relationship, but also their communication. The wife gave birth to Nikas's first child - son Stefano.

Francesca lived with her son in Italy and later moved to England. Initially, after the birth of their son, the couple lived together for several months, but Nikas’s visa expired, and upon arriving in Russia, the artist was in no hurry to return to his family.

Former common-law wife of Nikas Safronov - Maria

The former common-law wife of Nikas Safronov is Maria. There is little information about the girl, but there are several photos of her and the artist on the Internet. Maria is clearly younger than her common-law husband, and is also plump. Perhaps this relationship would have a future, but not a destiny. The girl left Nikas Safronov when a scandal broke out about the artist’s rape of a certain Mary, a resident of Rostov-on-Don.

Later in judicial procedure Nikas Safronov achieved the truth, and a fine of 300 thousand rubles was collected from the woman who accused him of rape.

Exhibition by Nikas Safronov, ticket prices in different cities

Of particular interest to art connoisseurs is the personal exhibition of Nikas Safronov (ticket prices may vary in different cities). Here visitors can see over a hundred works by the artist in the classical, portrait style.

At some of these inserts, Nikas Safronov sometimes conducts master classes and creative evenings for intelligent audiences.

Personal exhibitions of Nikas Safronov are very popular especially among young and beginning artists who can learn for themselves important information and adopt the experience of a modern artist.

Instagram and Wikipedia Nikas Safronov

Instagram and Wikipedia Nikas Safronov are good sources for those looking for biographical information about the artist and last news. The popular Russian artist has over 44 thousand subscribers on the social network. Here Nikas Safronov often adds new photos depicting his works. Many photographs with various cultural figures, famous domestic and foreign actors, leading, politicians.

Nikas Safronov is constantly involved in charity work, photo reports of which can also be seen on the artist’s Instagram.

You can also read a lot of information about him on the Wikipedia website. Article found on alabanza.ru

"Artist" scammer Safronov makes paintings in Photoshop

The fraudulent scheme is taken from "Kings and Cabbages" by O. Henry

I painted a portrait of one of my famous friends, he made postcards from it and once went to Israel. There, a girl came up to him for an autograph and saw who the author of the portrait was. “So we study Safronov like a classic at school.” He asks her: “Which other Russian are you studying?” She says: "Picasso and Dali." I was pleased to hear this. It’s good, of course, when you are Safin’s daughter, your name is Alsou and they help you in your creativity. I didn't have that. My path is thorny. (From an interview with Nikas Safronov.)

Sadalsky has a funny article on his blog (not like himself, as I understand it) about the formation and creative path of a phenomenon called Nikas Safronov. Actually, it doesn’t say anything particularly new - and it’s been known for so long what this “artist” is like. [with famous "moral principles"- Ruspres] and how he climbed into all sorts of holes of the powerful of this world without soap.

And one knowledgeable person told me that Safronov was almost the first to bring a printer that prints on canvas to Moscow. At one time, such a thing cost several tens of thousands of dollars. But it paid off quickly for him: Nikas took paintings by old masters in Photoshop, sculpted some mug in place of a face Abramovich, printed it out - and the “portrait” is ready. He handed these portraits to the powers that be, trying to create the trend of “ordering a portrait from Safronov,” and, it seems, he actually began to receive some orders. And then it’s a simple matter: I took a photo, processed it in Photoshop with some artistic filters and printed it out.

Portrait of Roman Abramovich

By the way, then these printers became much cheaper and everyone began to use them. Approximately 90% of the paintings sold at various opening days in Moscow are printed, not painted.

****

Wiring in the image of the “Russian Salvador Dali”

The story of the artist Nikos Safronov's enrichment

Let's return to the furniture store in our time. Kolyas Safronov set up a projector and showed slides of his work on the back wall of an Italian wardrobe. My friend, a furniture maker, seeing my surprise, explained that Safronov promised to attract a rich audience, but charges very little for his show. By the way, he asked me to write a review. I promised in the heat of the moment. Time has passed, the promise must be fulfilled, but not to write about a furniture store, so I decided to write about the work of Kolyaska Safronov.

The first thing I did was go to his official website, where I learned that “Over the years, only one Russian painter was able to achieve worldwide recognition,” “... an entry in the World Book of Knowledge about being included... in the 100 best artists of the 20th-21st centuries seems meager an addition to the career success of a Russian painter who calmly works in various genres..." and so on and so forth... But amazingly, Yandex did not give a single one!!! links to the query “world book of knowledge”. Yes, how much more insignificant is such an addition... As for the “various genres” in which Colcas “calmly” works, we can safely say that never (!), in any time and in any people, there has never been an artist which would work in almost all conceivable and inconceivable genres. Safronov is the only one! That’s why, apparently, he’s “calm.” On the same website we read that “Ordering and buying a painting by a master will not be difficult. A simplified system for receiving orders and performing work using photographs...” Of course, as long as there are customers, there is no need to worry too much.

I also surfed the Internet. Conflicting information. For example, in the article (Komsomolskaya Pravda dated 04/08/2011) it is written: “Safronov quickly said that he remembers his Ulyanovsk childhood... He mentioned his Lithuanian mother, Russian father, infidel blacks who are neither Orthodox nor Catholic.” And on Wikipedia we read: “Father - Stepan Grigorievich Safronov (Erzyan by nationality). Mother - Safronova Anna Fedorovna, a native of the city of Panevezys. Do you remember something similar? “Mother is Russian, and father is a lawyer”? This is some kind of nonsense. And one more thing: all the sites claim that Safronov was born in Ulyanovsk in 1956. And where did the “infidel blacks” in Ulyanovsk childhood come from then? Another mystery. Therefore, I decided that it would be better to tell you three (only three!) true and reliable stories about the “only internationally recognized” Russian artist Safronov.

Story one. Becoming

They say that his friend Yuri Longo told Safronov this ingenious scheme, who in turn read it from some old American author (most likely from O. Henry).

Portrait of Vladimir Putin

The third stage: you need to show this album to potential customers, commenting on the pictures in the correct discourse. Who is the potential customer for Safronov’s portrait in modern Russia? A thieving official or a criminal businessman, i.e. a real sucker! (Another one will not go to Kolyas). His education is at the appropriate level. He doesn’t know any artists other than Shishkin and Repin. Yes, and he knows those from the cover of “Native Speech” for the first grade of the Soviet school. This sucker should be poked in the face with a little album with a portrait of the Queen of England. For those who are especially incredulous, you can also show a real letter of gratitude from the royal chancellery (that’s where it came in handy!). Tell about the reception at Buckingham Palace, how the queen cried with happiness when she saw Safronov, how she threw herself on his neck with kisses, etc. You need to explain to the client that he is no worse than the queen, which means he should have a portrait painted by Kolyaska in his house on Rublyovka Safronov. It is hoped that the client will never know that the artist Safronov has never even laid eyes on the Queen of England (as well as others whose portraits he painted).

Price? Today it has already risen to 50 thousand dollars for a portrait “with handles” and up to 40 thousand “without handles”. “Pens” Kolyashkis calls human hands, which are as difficult to write (the layout is the same) as the face. But real boys, obviously, always order “with handles.”

"With handles." Portrait of Tina Kandelaki

This primitive and ancient fraudulent scheme still works to this day. Dare and try, young artists, however, it is not at all necessary to be an artist here. I wish you success!

The second story. Creativity flourishes

This story was told in a large company (where I happened to be) by Andrei Makarevich, the leader of the rock group “Time Machine”. Here is the story in brief: “One day the artist Safronov called me (where did he get the phone?) and said that he would come to my house (how did he find out the address?) and give me a portrait. A portrait painted by him, and in the portrait, as you understand, I am depicted. I answer that I don’t need the portrait and ask him never to call me again. A few days later I leave the house, and he is already waiting for me at the gate. And the portrait, packed in thick paper, bothers me. A gift for your favorite singer. Well, you can’t offend a person, I took the portrait. I threw it straight into the attic without unpacking it. There he lies. I have never seen this portrait and I don’t want to see it. And, you friends, if you ever come across my portrait in Safronov’s album, then remember that not only did I not pose for Safronov, but I don’t really know him either.”

Well, as an addition: I once met my old friend, a famous art critic, and he laughed: “My friend called me here.” Alexander Sergeevich Sokolov(Minister of Culture of Russia) and asks what he should do with his portrait, which was sent from the artist Safronov. I answer: never, Alexander Sergeevich, tell anyone about this. This is not appropriate. In general, it is indecent to mention Safronov’s name in public. He doesn't shake hands. Destroy the portrait or hide it so that no one, God forbid, sees it. Otherwise, a preconceived opinion will be formed about your artistic taste. And this, as the Minister of Culture, can be very harmful to you.”

Story three. Liquidity

For 15 years now, the Russian Antique Salon, the largest antique fair in Russia, has been held in Moscow, at the Central House of Artists, twice a year. At the opening of the salon, the usual gathering of interested parties gathers, which has already become an obligatory and traditional phenomenon of Moscow social life. A couple of years ago, at the opening of another salon, I was surprised to see a painting by Safronov in one of my gallery owners’ acquaintances. The painting depicted a portrait Kristina Orbakaite. I asked a friend why he was selling a completely inappropriate product. This is not an antique. The gallery owner told me a story about how he bought, on occasion, a certain set of antique objects. The seller sold only the whole thing, wholesale and “locomotive” attached this painting by Safronov to the antique pile. I had to buy it.

"Portrait" of Kristina Orbakaite with a rat - the pinnacle of Safronov's idiocy

- How much is it, daughter?

Alla Borisovna smiled:

- Do you want something?

[Online diary draco_argento, 10/04/2011, “The only internationally recognized Russian artist”: Nikas Safronov NEVER studied at the Rostov Art School. He attended preparatory courses at RHU. — Insert K.ru]

Vasily Chapaer

Source: apn.ru, 10/04/2011,

****

"Both Sophia Loren and Spielberg wanted to rape me..."

A huge scandal is breaking out around the paintings of Nikas Safronov, among which there is a ceremonial portrait of the President of the Russian Federation: buyers of the paintings suddenly began to discover that they had been sold hack work. A reproduction of the portrait of Vladimir Putin by Safronov now hangs in the offices of many Russian officials, both in Moscow and in other cities and villages. And its picturesque prototype was sold some time ago. The portrait was bought by our fellow countryman, the former Minister of Internal Affairs of Russia, and now co-owner of the resort in Undory Andrey Dunaev. He is a rich man, he collects a collection of paintings, for which he even goes to auctions in London. Dunaev paid several thousand dollars for a portrait of Putin. When I figured it out, I realized that it was consumer goods. The picture was painted using computer technology. A photograph is taken, stored in the computer's memory, then it is corrected on the display (wrinkles are removed, circles under the eyes, if any, etc.) and displayed on canvas. Here the portrait is painted with paints. All work, as Nikas Safronov’s representative Alexander Gaisin says, takes no more than three hours.

Safronov’s representative, Gaisin, mentioned above, was preparing a traveling exhibition of Nikas’s works. In the room where Gaisin lived during his visits to Moscow, he collected about three dozen paintings. One day the paintings disappeared. According to Alexander Gaisin, his money, passport, two passbooks and documents, including contracts with the artist, disappeared along with them. Having discovered the loss, the victim wrote a statement to the Lefortovo District Department of Internal Affairs of Moscow. The application was accepted for processing. A week later, Gaysin came to the police department and learned that Nikas had accused him of forging paintings and stealing slides with reproductions. The artist sent a statement about this to the same police department. They began to interrogate Gaisin. He had almost no documents with him; they had been stolen. He guessed who stole the paintings and papers: a man from Nikas’ circle.

Gaisin does not rule out that when his friend found out about the counterfeiting scandal, he might have come up with the idea of blaming everything on the representative. He is capable of this, says Gysin. Alexander Grigorievich does not yet know how the conflict will turn out. While waiting for the outcome, he writes a fiction story in which he introduces Nikas under the name of Michael Kuzovatkin. Fortunately, the hero has been in front of the author’s eyes all his life. When asked what explains Nikas’s tendency towards women’s breasts and asses hanging anywhere in his paintings, Gaisin says: “I don’t know, it’s his psyche, probably.”

Meanwhile, in Safronov-Kuzovatkin’s homeland, his name continues to be immortalized. Through Shamanov they petition to award Nikolai Stepanovich the Order of Friendship of Peoples. And in Dimitrovgrad they plan to install his bust and name a technical lyceum after him. It was not reported which image of the maestro would be taken as a model for the monument. As a sponsorship, we publish one of his photographs. After the city in Cheremshan, the “sample” can be repeated in front of the entrance to Ulyanovsk secondary school No. 65, whose leadership has already achieved the naming of its educational institution after the artist. In the photo, however, he is without pants, but this does not bother him; he loves being photographed like that. We might not have given this photograph, but we consider its publication a socially important matter: children in schools and lyceums have the right to know what the idol is and what it professes, which teachers and older comrades teach them to worship. And he professes something that he himself beautifully calls “inner freedom.” Six years ago, a journalist from one of the Ulyanovsk newspapers told in her publication how she interviewed the painter at the Venets Hotel. Having finished the conversation, the girl stood up, “but suddenly,” she writes in her article, “with one throw Nikas throws me onto the bed on which he had just been sitting. I quickly jumped up and pushed him away from me, asking what happened to him.” want you".

The journalist ran out into the hotel corridor, Safronov ran after her and, asking for forgiveness, muttered: “Both Sophia Loren and Spielberg wanted to rape me...”

Sergey Polenov

Source: "Simbirsk Courier", 12/14/2002

****

Most people only know the “front facade” of Nikas, says Gaysin. — Prince, holder of orders, professor, philanthropist, talented painter, “Russian Salvador Dali,” Putin’s favorite artist. All this is a legend that Safronov himself created around himself. I’ve known him for half his life and I’m telling you for sure: Nikas, at his core, is an ordinary person in a beautiful package. In many interviews he claims that he was chosen by God. But he is silent, as many years ago in a whole village he took down icons from old women...

— Are your memories a memoir or a work of fiction?

— This is a fiction story, although the personality of the main character is completely based on Nikas. I did not embellish or invent a single fact of his biography.

Became an informer for the OBKhSS

Nikas was expelled from the art school in Rostov for being immoral - he began sleeping with an elderly teacher. The military registration and enlistment office was already waiting for him: Safronov was sent to serve in the missile forces in Latvia.

“He decided to play like a fool. Fortunately, before mobilization (as if I sensed that it would be necessary), I memorized a small brochure about various forms of mental illness,” recalls Gaysin. “This is where my unclaimed acting skills came in handy.”

At the first aid station, he argued that he saw natural tailed devils on the white wall. The doctors chuckled. But when he declared that he would commit suicide, because there were messengers of the devil in the nuclear missiles, he was hastily sent to the city. There they examined me, tried to treat me with electric shock and sedative pills, and then put me in a psychiatric hospital in Riga. In order for him to be discharged, he had to lie there for 10 days. Nikas couldn't stand it. Having learned that in the next ward some crazy person had smashed a young doctor’s head with a stool, Nikas began pounding on the locked door, demanding that he be immediately sent back to the unit, since he had recovered and wanted to fulfill his civic duty to the Motherland...”

Why doesn’t Nikas recognize his “masterpieces”?

In many interviews, Safronov talks about how long he has been working on his creations. But then sometimes he doesn’t even recognize them. Why?

“Nikas is a team, not just for football, but for unpromoted artists,” answers Gaisin. - How he does it? He buys paintings by unknown artists in Russia and then sells them with his signature somewhere in Germany or America. Then he buys paintings by the same poor fellows in Italy or Germany for pennies and sells them for thousands of bucks in Russia. There was such an Ulyanovsk artist Volodya Surkov. Talent! Nikas knew him and saw the paintings. I personally bought all the remaining paintings from his widow, which Nikas later sold as his own in Germany. Therefore, sometimes he comes to collectors, they show him his own paintings, and he recognizes them only when he sees his signature on them.”

Nikas's portraits of politicians and Hollywood actors brought him worldwide fame. It turns out that almost all of them were also written with the help of poor students and computer technology.

Under any pretext, giving stars and politicians their portraits is in the spirit of Nikas. Then he announces that his paintings are in the collections of great people."

Nikas' mistress smokes weed before sex

Source: ulpressa.ru, 04/26/2006

Nikas is impressed

Thanks to arthorse for the clear example.

Source: Network diary deja_vu_global, 11/16/2009

The image of Peter and the Napoleon complex

And for a woman - beauty:

Yes, yes, you heard right - beauty.

Most workers in the “historical portrait to order” genre do not hide the fact that they copy from other people’s images not only the classic surroundings, but also the faces of clients:

However, they like to emphasize that they do not use Photoshop, but brushes and paints.

With this approach, you can remain in demand even without improving your painting technique: