Kukryniksy decoding of surnames. How was Kukryniks born? Influence on world culture, awards

The famous Soviet poet Alexander Zharov recalls that in 1925, when he was the editor of a youth magazine, three art students somehow came into his office and offered their services. “What can you draw?” Zharov asked. Then the young people immediately set to work and, in the process of transferring the drawing to one another, quickly sketched several well-aimed cartoons on the writers who were present, which aroused general admiration. Since then, sharp and expressive drawings by young authors, signed with the compound name Kukryniksy, began to appear regularly in the magazine.

It was at the dawn of a joint creative activity talented Soviet artists Mikhail Vasilievich Kupriyanov, Porfiry Nikitich Krylov and Nikolai Aleksandrovich Sokolov.

The creativity of the Kukryniksy is striking in its diversity. Thoughtful artists work with inspiration and perseverance on large paintings, caricature, posters, book illustrations, and even on sculptural portrait pursuing in every art form high results. Extraordinary relevance of the topic, ideological orientation and intelligibility of content, originality and conciseness artistic language- these merits of the Kukryniksy's works, clearly visible to everyone, make them understandable to oneself a wide range Soviet viewers and readers.

Caricatures of artists Kukryniksy

Being talented painters, the Kukryniksy, first of all and most of all, are the most prominent masters of Soviet political graphics, artistic satire. It is difficult to name at least one significant event in international life starting from the 30s and ending with the present day, which would not have caused a corresponding response in their work.

At one time, the cartoons of the Kukryniksy mercilessly exposed the conspiracy of the imperialist powers against Republican Spain, the preparations for the Second World War (“Scheme of Strict Control of the Spanish Borders”, “Continuation of last war"and others). In these, as in all other works, the artists act as spokesmen for the views and interests of our people, who tirelessly fight for peace throughout the world.

Kukryniksy perform with no less success in the region household satire. Their blows are directed against everything obsolete, inert and ugly that interferes with movement Soviet people to a great future. From the extensive cycle of works by the Kukryniksy on everyday topics it is necessary to highlight the series "Transport", the drawings "Desperate weekend", " memo”,“ Toadstools ”(about young people servility to foreigners).

The caricatures of the Kukryniksy are so peculiar in form that the viewer immediately recognizes their authors, without even looking at the signature. Inexhaustible in artistic invention and ingenuity, the Kukryniksy are able to recreate in front of us the appearance of this or that political degenerate (Stolypin, Kerensky, Wrangel) with a few bold and precise lines, to show the typical in the images of a bureaucrat, a fraudster, a grabber. The sharpness of Kukryniks graphics is a prime example of great importance collectivity in creativity: each of the artists offers his own solution to the topic, in the process of discussion, all the best are selected from them, and then all the efforts of the team are directed to working out the final version.

WWII posters in the work of the Kukryniksy

Numerous posters in the TASS Windows created by the Kukryniksy during the harsh years of the struggle against the fascist invaders are still fresh in our memory: “We will mercilessly defeat and destroy the enemy!”, “The transformation of the Krauts”, “Volga cliff”, “Harvesting is a formidable blow to the enemy " and others. Responding to the most urgent tasks of the time, extremely expressive, they were a powerful ideological weapon, giving even more strength to Soviet soldiers at the front and the working population in the rear.

On the pages of Pravda, Krokodil and other Soviet publications, sharp cartoons of the Kukryniksy invariably appeared, nailing troubadours to the pillory cold war and their accomplices. In 1958-1959, the cartoons "Berlin Question", "Militant Parrot" and others were published. In No. 2 of "Crocodile" for 1960, dedicated to the memory of A.P. Chekhov, the witty cartoon "Intruder on an international scale" is remembered: the West German Chancellor Adenauer carefully unscrews the nuts from the rails, at which there is a sign "To peaceful coexistence".

Paintings by artists Kukryniksy

Veliky Novgorod in January 1944. Against the background of a gloomy sky, the majestic bulk of St. Sophia Cathedral rises. Fragments of the barbarically destroyed monument "Millennium of Russia" stick out from under the snow. Around the buildings, Hitlerite warriors fussily rush about with torches. Forced under mighty blows Soviet army it's shameful to run from ancient city, they are in impotent rage trying to destroy the priceless treasures of Russian culture.

This is the content of the well-known paintings by Kukryniksy The Flight of the Fascists from Novgorod. Despite the dramatic intensity of the moment, well conveyed by the contrasts of dark and light spots, the picture is imbued with an optimistic mood. The artists were able to show in it the utter doom of the geeks who intended to enslave our socialist Motherland.

Others are imbued with a patriotic feeling paintings Kukryniksov dedicated to the events of the Great Patriotic War - "Tanya", "Pravda", "The End".

IN last picture the images of great artistic power show the inglorious death of Hitlerism, in the defeat of which the Soviet Union played a decisive role.

Illustrating the works of Gogol, Saltykov-Shchedrin, Chekhov and Gorky, the artists strive to reveal to the reader the humanistic orientation of great Russian literature as fully as possible. The most successful in this regard are the Kukryniksy drawings for Gogol's "Overcoat", Chekhov's stories "Tosca" and "I want to sleep."

It should be noted that each of the Kukryniksy has a bright creative personality and works a lot independently. So, M. Kupriyanov is especially fascinated by the landscapes of the Moscow region and the Volga, P. Krylov made many portraits and perfectly conveyed the picturesque originality of Paris, Rome and Venice, and N. Sokolov lovingly depicts the life of his native Moscow and the touching beauty of Russian nature. Continuously enriching their knowledge and experience, artists combine them in one way or another. general idea, stubbornly achieving in each new work an ever greater completeness of the plot and its artistic embodiment.

How many artists of Kukryniksy?

What does the pseudonym "Kukryniksy" mean - transcript

* The pseudonym "Kukryniksy" is composed of the first syllables of the names of Kupriyanov and Krylov, as well as the first three letters of the name and the first letter of the surname of Nikolai Sokolov.

Years of life

*Mikhail Vasilyevich Kupriyanov 1903-1991

Porfiry Nikitich Krylov 1902-1990

Nikolai Alexandrovich Sokolov 1903-2000 (source - Wikipedia)

Tags: biography and work of artists Kukryniksy.

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In 1932, Muscovites saw posters for the first exhibition of an artist with a strange surname - Kukryniksy. But, although the exhibition was the first, many already knew that the Kukryniksy were Mikhail Kupriyanov, Porfiry Krylov and Nikolai Sokolov. Their creative community began in the mid-1920s. within the walls of VKHUTEMAS (Higher Artistic and Technical Workshops). It began with a student wall newspaper, an exhibition of parodies of the art of those years, and then continued on the pages of newspapers and magazines.

Maxim Gorky paid attention to artists. In an introductory article to the catalog of the Kukryniksy's first exhibition, he called them "a consubstantial and inseparable trinity." A sign of the writer's trust was an assignment to young artists to complete illustrations for the novel The Life of Klim Samgin.

Maxim Gorky at the Kukryniksy exhibition in 1932

The Kukryniksy are artists of an extremely wide range, they are subject to easel painting, caricature, illustration, poster art, sculpture, performance design. But the satirical graphics of the Kukryniksy are the most popular. In the 1930s, their cartoons and humorous drawings-cycles "Old Moscow", "Domestic pests", "Transport", "Hot washing" were extremely popular. Turning to topical issues, the artists won the love of Soviet citizens.

And yet the main thing in the work of the Kukryniksy is a political poster and a political caricature.

The journalistic talent of the Kukryniksy was revealed with extraordinary force during the years of the Great Patriotic War. The poster "We will mercilessly defeat and destroy the enemy" appeared on the streets on June 24, 1941. Their posters and caricatures of the war years are a bright page of Soviet art. They called for a fight, aroused hatred for the enemy. The drawings were accompanied by laconic text or verses. Their authors were poets S. Marshak, D. Poor.

The theme of the Great Patriotic War is associated with the most significant achievements Kukryniksov in the field of thematic painting. Having visited the site of the death of Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya, the artists paint the painting “Tanya”. The canvas “The Flight of the Nazis from Novgorod” is also written on the material collected when visiting those places. But their most famous painting was “The End. Last days Hitler's rates.

Tanya

End. The last days of Hitler's headquarters

After the war, the Kukryniksy worked in the field of illustration. For many generations of readers, the images they create are inseparable from literary heroes books designed by them.

Illustrations for Gogol's stories

Illustrations for the story "Lefty"

The creative team of Soviet graphic artists and painters, which included full members of the Academy of Arts of the USSR, folk artists USSR (1958), Heroes Socialist Labor Mikhail Kupriyanov (1903–1991), Porfiry Krylov (1902–1990) and Nikolai Sokolov (1903–2000).

The pseudonym "Kukryniksy" is composed of the first syllables of the names of Kupriyanov and Krylov, as well as first three letters of the name and the first letter of the surname of Nikolai Sokolov. Artists have always worked together, and this was the phenomenon of their collective creativity. The most famous "Kukryniksy" brought numerous masterfully executed caricatures, cartoons, posters and book illustrations created in a characteristic satirical style.

The joint work of the Kukryniksy began in student years at the Higher Artistic and Technical Workshops. Artists from different parts of the USSR came to Moscow VKHUTEMAS. Kupriyanov from Kazan, Krylov from Tula, Sokolov from Rybinsk. In 1922, Kupriyanov and Krylov met and began working together in the VKHUTEMAS wall newspaper as Kukry and Krykup. At this time, Sokolov, while still living in Rybinsk, signed Nix on his drawings. In 1924, he joined Kupriyanov and Krylov, and since then the three of them have worked as the Kukryniksy.

At first creative way in the group there was a search for a new unified style that used the skill of each of the authors. The heroes of literary works were the first to fall under the pen of cartoonists. Later, when the Kukryniksy became permanent contributors to the Pravda newspaper and the Krokodil magazine, they took up predominantly political caricature.

Big role V patriotic education Soviet people caricatures, posters and “TASS Windows” created by the Kukryniksy during the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945 played, combining evil satire and heroism in symbolically generalized images (“We will mercilessly defeat and destroy the enemy!”, 1941). The post-war works of the Kukryniksy, which denounce warmongers, imperialists, enemies of peace and socialism, also have significant political power. For political cartoons and posters, the Kukryniksy were awarded the State Prize of the USSR (1942) and the Lenin Prize (1965).

The works of the Kukryniksy are in almost all major museum collections in Russia; State Tretyakov Gallery, Russian state library, Rybinsk and Yaroslavl state historical and architectural art museums-reserves, Tula Museum of Fine Arts, private collections in Russia and abroad.

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The creative association of artists Kukryniksy, which became famous in the 30-40s of the XX century for its satirical works, is almost unknown to new generations today. Artists have played an important role in culture and politics Soviet Union.

VHUTEMAS - meeting point

The higher artistic and technical workshops, created in 1920 and known throughout the world as VKHUTEMAS, produced a large number of designers and artists who significantly influenced not only Soviet culture, but also left a mark in world art.

In particular, the artists of Kukryniksy, who came here, started their journey from here. different ways and from different places, but with one goal - to learn how to create beauty. Mikhail Kupriyanov and Porfiry Krylov met in 1922 while working on issues of the VKHUTEMAS wall newspaper "Arapotdel". They signed their works with the abbreviation Kukry and Krykup. They were later joined by student recruit Nikolai Sokolov, who had long signed his work as Nix. This is how the famous students appeared, united not only by love for art, but also by a common worldview. Their element was laughter, they subtly noticed humorous features in the surrounding reality, and this became their starting point in cooperation.

Commonwealth of like-minded people

The artists of Kukryniksy are a unique phenomenon in world culture. Simultaneous work on the works demanded from them a close connection and closeness in their views. They were united by a creative platform - they sought to notice the funny and express it in drawings. V. Mayakovsky played an important role in the formation of the Commonwealth, he embodied their thoughts and moods. His "Windows of Growth Satire" became a real university for cartoonists. The poet also drew attention to an interesting team and invited them to arrange the production of "The Bedbug", later they will create a series of sketches for this work. In this work, the features of their artistic method, they drew courage, accuracy and topicality from Mayakovsky.

The biography of the team is connected with the creation of a unique phenomenon in fine arts, it was called "positive satire." The second person to play essential role in the formation of the Kukryniksy, there was Gorky. He not only helped them find work, but also guided them on the right ideological path. It was he who encouraged their interest in politics and helped them understand the party line. Truly satirical works- mocking and caustic. For several decades, from the mid-20s to the end of the 90s, the artists were close friends, and this allowed them to work together.

The artistic method of the Kukryniksy

Artists Kukryniksy were able to create a unique method of working on the work. existed before them, but there were none in which all creative individualities were erased in the name of the collective "I" of the artist. They worked in such a way that the potential of each creator was embodied to the greatest extent in the final work. As a result of close unity, a recognizable satirical style of artists arose, which was most fully realized in posters and caricatures, but is also distinguishable in paintings. They worked on the work in turn, the drawing went around in circles, each one added his own touches to it, and a collective product was obtained.

Kukryniksy have always adhered to two principles: nationality and party spirit. They understood art as a service to the Motherland, and they carried the heroic mood of the era of the 1920s through their entire creative life.

Milestones of the creative path

Started joint work Kukryniksy as cartoonists in the famous wall newspaper "Arapotdel", which sharply ridiculed cosmopolitans and formalists, putting the party line into practice. Since 1924, they began to engage in illustrations for literary works. They illustrated young writers and even developed such a genre as fine criticism. Maxim Gorky drew attention to unusual illustrators and advised them to draw themes for art more widely from life, and not just from literature. At the end of the 1920s, the cartoons of the Kukryniksy were published in all literary magazines, they became close to many writers. They exposed literary vices: boredom, absurdity, formalism. And today, many of their caricatures have not lost their relevance.

Since 1925, the group has been actively cooperating with the Soviet media, publishing caustic caricatures of social vices there. Gradually, their fame grew, and each reader, opening the newspaper, first looked for these drawings. During this period, their technique is honed, they are especially good at ink drawings, and the caricature, sarcastic presentation attracts with its atypical sharpness for the Soviet press. Their series, such as "Transport" in the newspaper "Pravda", brought them serious fame. They become the mouthpiece of the era.

In the prewar years, the Kukryniksy found themselves in a new genre - a political poster. During the war years, it becomes a real weapon against the enemy. Kukryniksy, whose posters helped the people of the Soviet Union in the most hard times became a powerful ideological instrument of power. Their poster "We will mercilessly defeat and destroy the enemy!" appeared on the streets of the country in June 1941. They served the Motherland and went through the whole war with soldiers and leaflets. They also worked in the TASS Windows project, which, in the form of a poster, covered the news and supported the morale of the nation. After the war, they received accreditation for the Nuremberg trials and conducted their sarcastic reporting from there. Kukryniksy became real classics Soviet caricature, they were known all over the world, received many professional awards.

The third direction in which the Kukryniksy worked was painting. They wrote genre paintings on historical themes laying the foundations of a new direction in art - socialist realism. During the period of restoration of the country, the Kukryniksy work a lot in the press, are engaged in book graphics, paint pictures. In the 60s they create a large number of illustrations for Russian classics. At the same time, each artist creates independently. In the 80s and 90s, due to their age, the artists worked less, but their creative union did not break up until the end of their lives.

Significant works of the Kukryniksy

The artists of Kukryniksy were very productive, many wonderful works came out from under their pencil and brush. The most notable were: a series of satirical portraits "The Face of the Enemy", which united expressive possibilities poster and easel painting, the triptych "Old Masters", illustrations for the collected works of Gogol and the works of Gorky, Saltykov-Shchedrin, Ilf and Petrov, as well as numerous posters of the war years. The latter include the “Museum of the Beaten”, “Plan for the Encirclement and Capture of Moscow”, “The Debt in Payment is Red”, as well as the paintings “Tanya”, “The Flight of the Germans from Novgorod”, “The End”.

Exhibitions and legacy of the Kukryniksy

In 1932, the first exhibition of the Kukryniksy was held, which was organized by Maxim Gorky. Political and everyday caricature, painting, book graphics. In 1952, a significant exhibition was held at the Academy of Arts of the USSR, at which the work of the Kukryniksy was widely and fully presented, as well as autonomous works of artists belonging to the association. In 2008, a retrospective exhibition of the Kukryniksy took place.

Cartoonists whose legacy is deeply rooted in history Soviet state, repeatedly received the highest state awards and awards. Their work is stored in major museums Russia.

The creative path of Mikhail Kupriyanov

Mikhail Kupriyanov was born in the small town of Tetyushi on the Volga. Since childhood, he loved to draw, studied in Tashkent at the Central Art Workshops, where he was sent on a youth permit. Behind special successes in his studies, he was sent to study in Moscow at VKhUTEMAS, where he became a member of the Kukryniksy.

Independent creative life Kupriyanov developed successfully, he realized himself as a painter. He loved the landscape genre. Today, his series of paintings with views of Leningrad, the Caspian Sea and the Moscow region are known.

Graduated from his life path in 1991.

Artist Porfiry Krylov

The second member of the Kukryniksy community is Porfiry in Tula. From childhood, he showed artistic abilities, studied at the art studio, then entered VKhUTEMAS. In addition to his activities in Kukryniksy, he worked a lot as a painter, painted portraits, landscapes, still lifes. His works are in the collections of many museums around the world. His house-museum was opened in Tula.

Porfiry Nikitich died in 1990.

Creative biography of Nikolai Sokolov

Muscovite Nikolai Sokolov studied at the art studio of Proletkult, after which he entered VKhUTEMAS and became the third member of the Kukryniksy. Sokolov took place as a talented painter. His favorite genre was the lyrical landscape. His works "Lermontov's Places", "Abramtsevo", "Evening on the Volga" and others are stored in best museums Russia.

Nikolai Sokolov died in 2000.