Nikolay Gritsyuk and Konstantin Chernykh: on the issue of artistic strategies in late Soviet art

Abstract

The article analyses the creative strategies of Novosibirsk artists N.D. Gritsiuk (1922–1976) and K.A. Chernykh (1923–1968) in the context of trends in late Soviet art. Under the conditions of normative discourse, N.D. Gritsiukʼs artistic strategy had a dual nature. On the one hand, he built a trajectory of behaviour limited by the guidelines of official art: he was a member of the Union of Artists and enjoyed its preferences (collective and solo exhibitions, open air events, art trips), at the beginning of his career (late 1950s – early 1960s), he turned to conjunctural plots and themes (the image of the modern city, industrial motifs). On the other hand, he created grotesques (“gritsiukovinyˮ) that were invisible to the public — scribbles and improvised drawings in albums and notebooks, which became a field of free self-expression for the artist. In the second half of the 1960s, they evolved into abstract compositions without titles, often not exhibited in public, but shown in the studio space for a small circle of “insidersˮ. K.A. Chernykh, unlike N.D. Gritsyuk, was a non-professional, amateur artist. His marginal position in society allowed him to freely turn to unexpected themes, techniques and methods: Old Russian themes, biblical subjects, carnival art, proto-performances, and collages. His chosen strategy of artistic and everyday anti-behavior brings his work closer to the art of outsiders. The implementation in the art community of Novosibirsk in the 1960s – 1970s two different creative strategies — conscious double-mindedness and anti-behavior — reflects the complex internal structure of late Soviet art, inherently multi-layered, not limited to the opposition of official and unofficial.