Description

Igor Medvedev  This popular American painter, created this stunning serigraph in color on wove paper.  It is signed by the artist and comes from the very limited edition of only 300 Prints.  Image size is 22”x 29”.  Framed as shown-no glass.

Igor Medvedev

1931-2015 Working in a variety of media throughout his career, including painting, printmaking, watercolor and sculpture, artist Igor Medvedev’s art is characterized by a focus on structure, deep colors, a masterful use of light and shadow, and a tranquil, peaceful mood.

Personal History:  The serenity of Medvedev’s works contrasts sharply with the tumultuous early years of his life. Born in Kharkov, Ukraine of the former Soviet Union in 1931, the young artist’s life was shaped by the events of World War II. Medvedev’s introduction to art came with the friendship of Anatoly Martinov, a skilled local artist who was his family’s neighbor that lived with them during the war.

Following two years of the German occupation of Russia, the Medvedevs left their home country in 1943, staying in Poland and Austria before settling in Germany. The family walked for a month to avoid Russian armed forces and just before the end of the war, they reached Germany’s American-occupied zone.

During these difficult times, Medvedev found solace in his art. “There is something leading all of us toward something,” he has said. “Through life, I was motivated to create art.” Medvedev sketched the German towns he saw, finding comfort in the architectural composition. “It was a structural pursuit,” Medvedev said, “not flowers or figures, but buildings and cityscapes. It was the beginning of a feeling. As you grow and you have that feeling, you begin to use it, add to it.” This search for structure and the desire to capture it in his art would become a theme in Medvedev’s art.

For the next few years, the Medvedevs resided in Munich, Germany. It was here that the young artist began learning the art forms of bronze casting and sculpture. Igor’s artistic talent helped the family move to America. William Sudduth, the head of youth resettlement for the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration, noticed Medvedev’s abilities and expedited the family’s immigration process. He also helped Medvedev earn a scholarship to Dartmouth College in New Hampshire, which he began attending in 1948.

At Dartmouth, Medvedev was further inspired by the work of artist-in-residence Paul Sample, who was creating paintings of winter landscapes of northern New England with a focus on architecture. Three years later, after graduating from the college with a degree in art history, Medvedev continued his studies at the University of Berkeley, graduating with a Master’s degree in 1953.

Medvedev’s art was immediately well-received. Between 1954 and 1963 he had fifteen one-man exhibitions of his work in Germany and numerous exhibitions in the United States. Still, he worked as a graphic designer and draftsman in Los Angeles to support himself and his family. Though his art was affected by the popular movements of Abstract Expressionism, Pop Art and Op Art, Medvedev found himself more inclined toward figurative work and structure, particularly in the roundness of these forms.

The year 1977 proved pivotal for Medvedev – it was during this year that he married Marina, and at her insistence, the couple moved to San Francisco. After teaching for a few years at San Mateo State College and Los Altos’ Foothill College, Medvedev began exhibiting in fine galleries in San Francisco and his career took another significant turn.

During the 1990s and through 2006, Medvedev worked in the printmaking medium of serigraphy. Medvedev worked hand-in-hand with the artisans at the Romi studio in Rishon Le Zion, Israel, where the serigraphs were created to ensure that each work faithfully retained the integrity of his art. A catalogue raisonée of his serigraphs was published by Park West Gallery® in 2002, “The Serigraphs of Igor Medvedev”. The book featured an introduction by Dr. Anthony Janson, co-author of the acclaimed Janson’s History of Art (which has sold more copies than any other art book in the world). In 2007 an extended edition of the book was published by Park West Gallery®, “The Serigraphs of Igor Medvedev, Volumes I and II”.