Vasily Kafanov (1952 - )

 
Kafanov was born in Moscow, Russia in 1952. After he earned a masters degree in art, Kafanov chose a respectable occupation of illustration and excelled at illustrating children's books, producing drawings for some 20 books in Russia and contributing illustrations to The New York Times and a book by Simon & Schuster in the United States. Kafanov also illustrated the album for the "Smashing Pumpkins" entitled MACHINA: The Machines of God. In 1973, Kafanov met the great master Marc Chagall, who subsequently became a mentor to the young artist. Although Kafanov's style has evolved significantly over the last thirty years, echoes of Chagall's style and themes remain. In fact, perceptive critics in the US and Europe have termed Kafanov's work "Chagallesque" because of its fairy tale scenes, its fascination with the mysterious and the surreal, and its fanciful moods. Kafanov has developed an interesting technique, utilizing mixed media to create incredibly detailed, precise, and complex paintings. He begins by applying oil and then adds acrylic for texture and Japanese ink for detail. The final canvas appears as a window into the world of drama and fantasy inviting the viewer to return to the imaginative realm of the innocent days of childhood.

Upon a close analysis of the artist's oeuvre, we discover a rich a recurring iconographical scheme, which winds through Kafanov's artwork. Certain symbolism seems to derive from Russian folk traditions such as the figures of the minstrels and musicians with their fantastic tower-heads and of the round Breughelesque dancing peasants. The false frames—borders painted inside the edges of the canvas—are based on Russian Orthodox icons, whose frames are often compositionally continuous with the images they contain. Personages from Bible stories and pagan Greek and Roman mythology appear at times as figures of little vignettes to be discovered in the drama of the composition. The ubiquitous floating "fishtower" may be a personification of Christ although this particular emblem embodies a personal signification for the artist as it represents a childhood memory as well as the form of Manhattan. In fact, the "fishtower" is signifies the fusion of the artist's two cultures, of his past and his present, and of fantasy and reality.

Recently, Kafanov participated in an event hosted by the Grant Gallery commemorating the six-month anniversary of the tragedy of September 11th. During this event, Kafanov and five other artists completed a mural in less than seven hours depicting the skyline of New York. The artists came from different backgrounds and different artistic styles and techniques. They joined together to create an incredible mural embodying grief and the hope for the future. The mural was endorsed and signed by Michael Gorbachev, the former president of the USSR and was on exhibited at the lobby gallery of Durst Organization located in midtown Manhattan until September 11th, 2002. The Grant Gallery donated the mural to the Museum of Modern Art in Moscow, Russia.

Over the past ten years of Kafanov's life in the US, his work has been exhibited by various art galleries and museums in Chicago, San Francisco, Hong Kong, France and Holland. He has had numerous one-man shows in the distinguished galleries of New York City. Kafanov's paintings hang in the Zimmerli Museum at Rutgers University and the Beaulieu Museum in France and in numerous distinguished private collections. He has been commissioned murals to decorate a private residence in California and a public space in Amsterdam. Kafanov generously contributes his work to charity and participates in auction benefits for several non-profit foundations. He has painted murals in the children's ward of the Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York City and was part of the American Cancer Society exhibit and the Leukemia Foundation auction at Lincoln Center in New York City.