Bidspirit auction | Vasily Alekseevich Vatagin (1883-1969) (presumably)

Vasily Alekseevich Vatagin (1883-1969) (presumably) Animal sketches”, 1950s, paper, pencil, 40.5x 28.5 cm. - The sheet attributed to Vasily Alekseevich Vatagin, ”Sketches of Animals” (1950s), is a typical example of the master's observational animalistic graphics. Quick pencil sketches capture the main thing: the habit, the silhouette and the internal ”motor” of movement — the turn of the head, the curve of the back, the tension of the paws. In these studies, it is not the decorative finish that is important, but the accuracy of an instant impression and the ability to convey the character of an animal in several lines. The pencil line works either lightly and airily, or thickens, enhancing the accents and design of the shape. The composition of the sheet is perceived as the artist's working page — a living visual diary, where plastic and anatomy are checked through observation, and the rhythm of individual sketches develops into a complete sense of nature and life. Vasily Alekseevich Vatagin (1883-1969) was a sculptor, painter, graphic artist, and illustrator. He studied in the Moscow studios of N. A. Martynov and K. F. Yuon. He was a member of the MTX (1909-1924), the ORS (1926-1932). Since 1908 he worked as an animal sculptor. He taught at the 1st GSHM (1919), VKhUTEMAS (1921), MVHPU (1963-1969, since 1965 - professor). People's Artist of the RSFSR (1964). Full member of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR (1957). His works are in the State Tretyakov Gallery, the State Museum of Fine Arts, the State Darwin Museum, the Timiryazev State Biological Museum, the Zoological Museum of Moscow State University, etc.