November 14, 2008 – March 8, 2009

Drawn from the Timkov Collection of Timothy and Lisa Wyman, the exhibit features remarkable landscapes by renowned Russian painter Nikolai Timkov (1912-1993). Dr. Alison Hilton, an eminent scholar of Russian art history and Chair of the Department of Art and Art History at Georgetown University, is co-curator of the exhibition.

A holder of the title of “Honorable Artist of the Russian Federation,” Timkov is represented in major public collection including the State Russian Museum and the St. Petersburg Museum of History. Dr. Albert Kostenevich, Impressionist Curator at the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, has characterized him as “the greatest Russian Impressionist landscape painter,” of the second and third quarters of the 20th century.

Nikolai Timkov was born to a farming family in the years prior to the Russian Revolution. Growing up in a village located along the lower Don River instilled in him a lifelong appreciation for rural life and nature. This influence can be seen in his remarkable depictions of small communities, winter landscapes, and the Ural Mountains — all portrayed in vibrant colors with a deft hand.

Timkov began painting as a youth and later studied at the Academy of Arts in present-day St. Petersburg. In this setting, he was influenced by the works of great Russian landscape painters, among them Levitan, Shishkin, and Brodsky. During the course of his long career he also incorporated elements found in works by French Impressionists. Timkov regularly returned to favorite rural places to paint these locales in different seasons. His landscapes embody the close relationship between the people of Russia and their land.

This exhibition, involving the Embassy of the Russian Federation, provides a wonderful opportunity for Meridian to work closely with Russia at a crucial time of leadership change.

http://www.meridian.org/timkov/