Gorbunov Konstantin. The biography and work of the artist

Light clouds, subtle rustle of leaves, breath of wind. Can everyone hear the marvelous beauty of nature? Will everyone be able to discern in a proud, impregnable person sensitivity, nobility or compassion? Maybe. But not everyone is given the opportunity to transfer silence, melody, breathing, or feelings of a person to the canvas. The works of Konstantin Gorbunov are a great example of how subtly a talented artist feels the soul of man and nature.

short biography

Konstantin Yurievich was born in the family of the artist Yu. V. Gorbunov on November 25, 1967. Kostroma is his hometown. Already in childhood, his favorite toys were a pencil and a brush, the artist recalls. In kindergarten, he had a friend who also loved to draw. They were nicknamed "brush" and "pencil."

Father gave him a small sketchbook, almost like a real one. He always carried it with him, throwing a long strap over his shoulder. In the workshop of his father, Konstantin could spend hours and draw, draw, draw. In those years, he worked with pencils and gouache.

Studied Konstantin at the Kostroma art school. In 1983, Gorbunov Konstantin entered the art school in Yaroslavl. After college for two years, from 1987 to 1989, he served in the Soviet Army.

Konstantin decided to continue his education at the Academy of Painting, where he entered in 1991. He perfectly remembered his first meeting with I.S. Glazunov, who, before the entrance exams, watched the work of applicants and decided whether to admit or not, after which he went to Konstantin and noted his last full-time work. The artist defended the diploma with the work “Portrait of Sergey Rachmaninov”.

Behind the student years are plein airs, copies. Ahead - the first creative work.

The path of the artist

The creative activity of Konstantin Yuryevich began with participation in exhibitions held in his hometown. He associated his work with Kostroma land, with his native nature and the history of his land.

For more than twenty-five years, Konstantin has been engaged in creative activities, participates in collective and personal exhibitions. In recent years, the artist has created many paintings related to the history of his native land, encompassed several Russian regions and guardian cities of unique historical and cultural monuments. They reflect the amazing beauty of the nature of the Russian hinterland, temples and monasteries.

The artist Gorbunov pays much attention to painting from nature, draws inspiration from the surrounding nature. From childhood, observing the work of his father, Konstantin sees beauty both in the picturesque cliffs of the Mediterranean, and on the banks of the Volga, in ancient streets and shopping arcades, in the golden domes of monasteries and temples.

The artist’s favorite places are the Kostroma hinterland and the Moscow region. He does not part with a sketchbook while traveling. Konstantin Gorbunov visited him in India and Montenegro, Greece and Croatia.

His works of the series “Historical Kostroma” and “Kostroma Land” were presented at more than twenty collective exhibitions held in St. Petersburg and Moscow. According to the results of the exhibition “Moscow - 2008”, Gorbunov was awarded a bronze medal for his contribution to Russian culture. The Cultural Heritage Fund noted him with a diploma for participating in the open air Montenegro 2008.

In 2008, for his work on the native land, its history and nature, the artist was awarded the Order of Labor Valor. From the historical series dedicated to his native land, the artist performed several works specifically for the foundation “400th Anniversary of the Romanov Dynasty”.

For the anniversary of his native Kostroma region in 2009, Gorbunov created a whole gallery of portraits of the ruling people of his native land. To formalize the administration of the region, the artist used the multi-figure painting "Kostroma - the cradle of the Romanovs."

Konstantin Yuryevich Gorbunov wrote more than a hundred graphic sheets and more than two hundred paintings. Artist's brushes belong to:

• a series of portraits of the "Roads of War", "Fate" and "Portraits of Contemporaries";
• series of landscapes “Image of the Northern Capital”, “Croatia”, “Streets of Novgorod”, “Moscow Region”, “Modern Moscow”;
• series of paintings “Image of childhood”, “Bird's yard”, “Waltz of flowers”;
• landscape cycles in Montenegro and Greece.

According to the artist himself, he is interested not only in the landscape itself, but in the world inhabited by man - a house, warm light, a laid table, children, ordinary things, warmed by the warmth of the human soul. Gorbunov paints portraits of not only famous contemporaries, but also those with whom he lives next door — acquaintances, passers-by. He seeks not only to truly reflect a person, but also to understand his inner world.

Portraits created by the master

Studying in a portrait workshop within the walls of his native academy, where Konstantin Gorbunov studied since 1994, was also not in vain. Despite the fact that by this time Konstantin had sufficient experience in the technique of drawing and painting, here he received unique knowledge.

Gorbunov devoted much time to the manner of painting of the old masters. He often visited the halls of the Hermitage and the Tretyakov Gallery in order to comprehend the unsurpassed technique of the classics of landscape and portrait. Constantly improving, Konstantin worked out the acquired knowledge and skills.

Konstantin knows how to catch the resemblance. From the inquisitive gaze of the master, the spiritual world of man will not escape. Skillfully reflects the artist and character traits. Portraits succeed.

Gorbunov painted portraits of his contemporaries: R. Kadyrov and V. Putin, V. Vasiliev and A. Zinoviev, portraits of the patriarchs Kirill and Alexy II. These works are included in the series "Fate". The artist created a series of paintings by famous personalities in history: Y. Dolgoruky and A. Suvorov, M. Romanov and Nicholas I, Catherine II and Nicholas II.

Enchanting painting

Gorbunov Konstantin worked on monumental paintings in the churches of St. Seraphim of Sarov and Christ the Savior, in the New Jerusalem Monastery and in the Assumption Cathedral. Working with teams of artists, he gained valuable experience, according to the painter himself.

Passion for art painting prompted the artist’s interest in translating creative ideas into private projects. Gorbunov’s portfolio includes excellent wall and ceiling decoration works:

• "High-society hunting", representing the composition of hunting for boar and deer. This magnificent painting decorates the ceiling of a suburban mansion.
• The landscape “Pine Trees under the Snow”, executed in an oriental style, is restrained, refined, prone to the search for harmony.
• The ceiling “Flowers” ​​above the spiral staircase, involuntarily forcing to see the blue sky. Butterflies fluttered out of the flowers in different directions. From the grass, covered with dewdrops, birds peep out.

Gorbunov is really trying to see the inner world, but not only of man. Under the brush of the artist reveals the whole depth of nature. Who doesn’t know the luxurious deep blue irises contrasting with the dazzling foliage green? Konstantin Yuryevich in his painting “Irises” managed to convey all the tenderness of this flower, the lightness and joy of spring, the sensitivity and touch of spring flowers - a magnificent picture.

The landscape performed by Gorbunov is something special. Under his brush, nature comes to life, she whispers in the foliage of trees, murmurs overflows of rivers, plays with the golden rays of the sun. The artist's brush conveys the elusive breath of nature. Gorbunov masterfully applies this in artistic painting. Gorbunov's work “Waltz of the Flowers” ​​is fascinating. The flowers on the wall come to life and seem to dance, spin in a waltz. Delicate pastel tones of the painting have at the same time some invisible power. Looking at the painting, as if you feel the breath of the breeze, you hear soft music and you feel the subtle aroma of flowers.

Awards and Exhibitions

The works of Konstantin Gorbunov were presented at collective and personal exhibitions, of which there are more than fifty. The artist’s work was marked by numerous awards, including a gold medal.

Now Konstantin Yuryevich transfers his knowledge to his students at the faculty of painting at his native academy, where he was invited to teach academic disciplines in 1999. Behind the walls of the Academy holds exhibitions, master classes, open airs.

Since 2006, Konstantin Gorbunov - Associate Professor, Department of Academic Drawing. He is currently working there, sharing his experience with students who continue the traditions of realistic painting in contemporary art.