Timur Novikov (1958–2002). On the 60th anniversary of the artist’s birth

The exhibition from the collection of the Russian Museum is a tribute to the memory of Timur Novikov, an outstanding artist and cultural figure of the late 20th century. 

For the first time, Novikov’s works were shown in the halls of the Benois Wing at the dawn of perestroika in 1989. In 1990, he participated in the legendary exhibition “Territory of Art,” which demonstrated the continuity of the ideas of modernism. In the early 1990s, Timur Novikov donated fifty-seven works by the “New Artists” from his collection to the Russian Museum. In 1998, the museum hosted a large retrospective exhibition of Timur’s work, and in 2008 a commemorative exhibition dedicated to the fiftieth anniversary of the artist was opened.

The exhibition for the sixtieth birthday of the artist presents seven works from the collection of the Russian Museum. Among them are works dedicated to St. Petersburg: “Airport,” “Bridge,” “Petersburg in Summer” — as well as an homage to Andy Warhol and neo-academic works “Apollo Trampling on the Red Square” and “David Trampling on the Red Square.”

Not only was Timur Novikov the leader of his generation, but he also became part of the world art process, and his works were exhibited in the world’s leading museums.

Timur Novikov stood at the origins of two trends in art. In 1982, he founded a group called “New Artists,” the successors of the Russian avant-garde. “Portrait of Timur Novikov,” created by his friends the artists Yevgeny Kozlov, Kirill Khazanovich and Denis Egelsky, is an image of the true hero, the dreamer, and creator. The picture includes Timur’s photo.

In 1988, Timur Novikov created a new movement, neo-academism. Founded in 1990, the New Academy of Fine Arts proclaimed its goal to revive the classical traditions, which, according to its founder, were lost not only by avant-garde artists but also by the official Academy of Arts. He invented a theory of two parallel art histories existing in constant contradiction to each other. Malevich’s Square in neo-academic works by Novikov simultaneously serves as a negation of the classics and its foundation.

The exhibition is located in Hall 1 on the second floor of the Marble Palace.
Exhibition opening 24 September, 4 p. m.