Akimov Ivan Nikolaevich

Works are held in private collections in the United Kingdom, Israel, Canada, USA, Portugal, Finland, Germany.

1983 15th Moscow Youth Exhibition. Central Exhibition Hall 'Manezh', Moscow;
1986 17th Moscow Youth Exhibition. House of Artists at Kuznetsky Most, Moscow;
1989 Beyond Genre. Palace of Youth, Moscow;
1989 Young Artists from the Russian Federation. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia;
1990 ART MYTH 1. Fair. Central House of Artists, Moscow;
1990 ART London. 'Union' Gallery, London;
1990 Russian Avant-garde and Contemporaries. 'Cooling' Gallery, London;
1990 Contemporary Soviet Painting. 'da Prasa' Gallery, Porto/Lisbon;
1990 ART Los Angeles. 'Cooling' and 'Union' Galleries, Los Angeles;
1991 ART MYTH 2. Moscow International Art Fair. Central Exhibition Hall 'Manezh', Moscow;
1992 1st 'STANBET' Gallery Exhibition. Hall of the Directorate of Exhibitions and Auctions of the International Foundation of Culture, Moscow;
1993 ART MYTH. 'Dar' Gallery, Moscow;
1994 'Soviet Painters'. 'Nina' Gallery, Cambridge, UK;
1994 Ways-Scriptures. 'Dar' Gallery, Center for Contemporary Art, Moscow;
1994 Every Picture a Home. Shchusev State Museum of Architecture, Moscow;
1998 Between Song and Fate. State Literary Museum, Moscow.
Personal exhibitions:
1991 Personal exhibition. House of Artists at Kuznetsky Most, Moscow;
1996 IvANYOshki. Moscow International Foundation for UNESCO Support, Moscow;
1996 Sasha and Vanya in the 'Unlucky Apartment'. M. Bulgakov Flat Museum, Moscow;
1996 Signs. Russian State Library for Foreign Literature, Moscow;
1997 Stages. 'Moscow Drawing Room' Gallery, Moscow;
1998 Dreams in the Summer Garden. 'Summer Garden' Gallery, Moscow;
1998 Portraits de femmes Russes. Atelier 'Z', Paris;
1999 In Search of Meaning. 'Summer Garden' Gallery, Moscow;
2000 New IvANYOshki. 'Summer Garden' Gallery, Moscow;
2000 Man and Women. International University Gallery, Moscow;
2000 Glass Rhapsody. 'Museum' Gallery, Moscow.

My journey in painting began in 1983, and in 1984 I started exhibiting at the Moscow youth exhibitions. At first, my work consisted of traditional painting—landscapes, still lifes, and portraits—like many of my contemporaries in Moscow. In 1986, I traveled to Kargopol, which inspired my 'Kargopol series,' a theme I sometimes revisit even today. Significant changes and a departure from my earlier manner began in 1988. I was greatly influenced by Nikolai Andronov’s phrase, 'You must learn to look at reproductions.' He also set up my first still life, which I painted at home, where I still work as I don’t have a studio. Three or four years after my initial interactions with Andronov, I realized he was right about learning to look at reproductions and how to perceive them. I have a good art library, but before I seriously took up painting, I had only superficially seen these books and albums, as a viewer, not as an artist.

The process of painting and drawing was interesting to me, especially since you receive money for such personal pleasure, for living and working in harmony with yourself. This seemed strange and amazing to me. At exhibitions, it was difficult to place my works—I needed a separate wall and never quite got along with neighboring artists. I often lack traditional painting means. Strangely, many elements in my paintings emerge because someone brings me something, and I start thinking about how to connect it with what I am doing on canvas. For example, felt boots are connected to the 'Kargopol series'—they materialized from it. When the felt boots appeared, they simply combined with already-present stars. This play became my signature style.

Recently, I've been drawn to beauty and want to work with acrylic paints and markers...

'Fresh Momentum for Moscow Art,' The Christian Science Monitor, April 22, 1992, p.14 (in English);
V. Khan-Magomedova, 'In Search of Meaning,' Nezavisimaya Gazeta, August 28, 1993, Moscow;
' STANBET' Gallery booklet, 1992, Moscow.