Vasilenko Nikolai Borisovich is an artist from the people. He mastered a style of painting that was unique in terms of technique. The artist created graphic works using an ordinary school pen and ink.
Nikolai Borisovich Vasilenko lived in the last century. He went from a graphic designer to a landscape painter and graphic artist.
Biography
Nikolai Vasilenko was born in the Voronezh region, in the village of Zaliman in the Bogucharsky district on May 22, 1917.
The artistic talent of the future painter manifested itself in his school years. Once he painted for Stalin's wall newspaper. Seeing the result, the teacher simply gasped, to what the "leader of the people" looked like!
When the boy was 17 years old, his relative invited the young man to come to Dnepropetrovsk to develop his gift at an art college. At first, the guy did just that, and then he transferred to study at the Odessa Art College.
As Nikolai Borisovich himself recalled, he had practically nothing to live on. He was often sick, constantly starving. Therefore, he went back to his native Boguchar, where he completed his studies in high school and received his secondary education.
Then the young man was drafted into the army. So he became a border guard. And here artistic skills came in handy. The young man drew wall newspapers, posters, and other visual aids.
When the Great Patriotic War began, Vasilenko was already the captain of the border troops.
Career
After the war, for almost 10 years, the artist worked in the Regional Executive Committee of the city of Voronezh and at the same time in print media as a freelance artist.
The painter recalled how, after the onset of the Khrushchev thaw, more illustrations were needed, the design of the headlines became more successful, and he himself became more and more carried away by cartoons.
Only in 1962 did Nikolai Vasilenko decide on his choice of profession. He got a job as a graphic designer. There he created the painting "Young Shoots". When this work got to the Leningrad exhibition, it was noted by both critics and spectators, realizing that a talented landscape graphic artist lived on the Voronezh land.
Unique technique
The main instrument of the artist remained the pen, and he created his masterpieces using ordinary ink. Nikolai Vasilenko chose these materials during his school years and remained faithful to them until the end of his life.
Many noted that such a technique for performing works is quite rare, since it is complex, therefore Nikolai Borisovich was recognized as a unique artist. Paying tribute to him, in 1977 the talented graphic artist was admitted to the Union of Artists, then he was 60 years old, and 20 years later the painter was awarded the title of Honored Artist of the Russian Federation.
Nikolai Borisovich Vasilenko over the years of his work was able to capture the beauty of his native land, using simple tools and materials, but complex technique. Now his works can be seen not only at home, but also in Austria, USA, India, Poland, Great Britain and in other countries.
The famous artist lived a bright and eventful life, he died in 2009, but he left behind a rich heritage that descendants can admire.
