Artist Biography

Nikolay Alexandrovich Pakhomov was born in Ufa in the family of a railroad worker. He spent his childhood on the banks of the Belaya river. In 1954 he graduated from school and was accepted into the Aviation Technical College of Ufa. After graduating from the college and serving in the army he spent some time working in a factory. In 1962 Nikolay Pakhomov entered into Ufa Art college. During his third year of studies there he meets A.E. Tulkin (one of the founders of traditions of Bashkir Art and one of the most famous artists of that time). After taking a look at some of the works of Nikolay Pakhomov, Tulkin invited Pakhomov to work at his studio.

In Pakhomov’s works of this period Tulkin’s influence can be clearly seen. At the start it seems like Tulkin’s and Pakhomov’s views of what art is and should be are identical, but Pakhomov goes on to change this approach and creates his own artistic style on the basics of Tulkin’s teachings: the same symbolic objects, artificial space created via optical illusions, the correlation of different parts of the painting, the perfection of color use to match the main idea and mood of the painting. During the many years of his artistic career, Pakhomov’s style transformed many times: from academic realism to impressionism, and later on to abstractionism.

Later on in his life, after many years of philosophical searching and reflection, he goes from a materialistic perception of reality to a more sublime and spiritual one. And goes on with his work, reflection and portraying his view of it.

From 1995 Nikolay Pakhomov has been a member of the Union of Artists of Russia. From 1993 till 2002 he was the director of the house-museum of A.E. Tulkin. His artistic style is extremely laconic. But this ’simplicity’ does not mean that his works are bereft of symbolism or dualism which allows for various interpretations. On the one hand, he tries to imitate his favorite characters, but at the same time he looks at this from the side with irony. This makes his works seem more natural, down to earth. His art reveals his true character, the character of the artist who created these paintings: a man, full of irony and courage, standing in the epicenter of life’s turmoil, and not only successfully fending off its attacks, but turning its energy into creativity.