Congratulations to P. Castillo who placed the winning bid of $2,500 for April's silent auction, a beautiful impressionistic floral still life, "Lilacs by the Window", by Kapitolina A. Rumyantseva, estimated at $6,000- $7,000.

As our May silent auction, we are pleased to present a beautiful landscape, "Street in Yalta", by Yevegeny Vasilievich Chuikov, estimated at $4,500- $5,500.

Yevgeny V. Chuikov, was awarded the title of Merited Artist of the Ukraine in 1977 and in 1997 he was awarded the title of People's Artist of Ukraine for his lifetime body of work. Established in 1922 during Soviet times, this is the most prestigious honor and is awarded to just one exceptional artist each year. It is the Soviet and Ukrainian equivalent of the American Kennedy Center Honors arts award.

This month's auction painting, "Street in Yalta" is an outstanding example of the artist's landscape work painted during his artistic prime. The painting's assertive color and brush strokes capture a simple moment on a street in Yalta, the famed jewel of the Crimea, playground of Czar Nicholas II, and the site of possibly the most controversial diplomatic conference of the century.

 Yevgeny V. Chuikov, "Street in Yalta"
19" x 27", 1964, Oil on Board, Framed
Estimated at $4,500 to $5,500, Current Bid $2,000, by B. Boykin

We invite you to participate in this month's auction and thank everyone who placed bids in April's auction. This is an exceptional opportunity to add a beautiful work by a highly acclaimed artist to your collection.

"Street in Yalta" is estimated at $4,500 to $5,500, the current high bid is just $2,000! The next bid is $2,250, followed by minimum bidding increments of $250.

Bids will be taken via telephone, or e-mail until 7:00 pm MST, May, May 31st. At the end of the auction the high bid wins! Follow all the bidding updates on the Gallery's website.

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Please e-mail bids only to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and make sure your receive confirmation of your bid.Note that you may place a maximum bid and the Gallery will bid on your behalf up to your maximum. By placing a maximum bid you will be assured you are not out bid at the last minute.

 BID FORM

Yevgeny Vasilievich Chuikov- (1924- 2000)
Translated from the original Russian

Yevgeny V. Chuikov was born on May 18, 1924 in the village of Nizhny Reut, Kursk region Russia. His father Vasiliy Chuikov was an accountant and Evgeniy was the second eldest of three brothers. In 1933 the family moved to Zaporizhia, Ukraine and Chuikov began attending the local art school under the stewardship I. F. Fedyanin. He quickly distinguished himself with his strong visual memory and intuitive feeling for color but the pursuit of further art education was however halted by the commencement of the Second World War.

In 1943, at the age of 19, he enrolled into the Red Army and joined the 3rd Ukrainian Front (Southwestern Front). He was assigned to a reconnaissance unit and took part in the Russian advance across the Dnieper. As the Red Army progressed, Chuikov joined the 3rd Belorussian Front and fought in the Prague Offensive and the Battle of Berlin. He served in Berlin until 1946 after which time he returned to Zaporizhia. For his service during the War he was awarded the 2nd and 3rd Order of Glory and the Medal "For Courage" as well as numerous other accolades.

In 1948, working as an artist designer at Zaporizhstal, Chuikov became friends with several other young artists and joined the local artist workshop. It was at this moment that the Zaporizhia school of art was born and encompassed other artists like G. Kolosovsky, Korobov, Fomin and Akinshin. Together they were united by their fascination and love of nature. In the footsteps of the Russian Realists and Impressionists they tried to convey not simply the light, tone and color but the sound and air of any given moment.

Chuikov had a profound influence on the formation of the school and his fellow artists. As a member of the USSR Union of Artists, Chuikov embarked on the formation of the Zaporizhia branch of the Artists' Union of Ukraine (USSR Union of Artists) established in 1963, which he oversaw as Chairman for over 20 years whilst also serving on the governing board of the Artists' Union of Ukraine.

Yet it is his artistic influence which is most celebrated. In the late 1960's after several painting trips to the historic Russian city of Vladimir, he was introduced to the Vladimir school of art and became friends with such artists as V. Ukin, K. Britov and V. Kokurin. Their decorative, color-saturated canvases made a big impact on Chuikov's work. His landscapes became more assertive with color and brush strokes and developed a historic melancholy characteristic of such 19th-century Russian realists as Arkady Rylov and Isaac Levitan. His work of that period, including the series dedicated to Alexander Pushkin "Mikhailovskoe" (Pushkin (town)) dramatically influenced the Zaporizhia school introducing his fellow artists to a more decorative, lighter palette.

In 1977 Chuikov was awarded the title of Merited Artist of Ukraine (Meritorious Artist) and in 1997 the highest award - the title of the People's Artist of Ukraine.

Evgeny V. Chuikov died in 2000 at the age of 76 in Zaporizhia. His works are in the collections of state museums of Ukraine, Russia, the Springville Museum of Art, as well as private collections in Ukraine, Russia, Europe the United States and other countries.

Exhibitions
Throughout his artistic career he took part in over 70 national, republican and regional exhibitions. He also participated in over 20 international exhibitions primarily in the United Kingdom, Canada, USA and France.

Collections
Chuikov's paintings can be found in many museums across Russia and Former Soviet Union Republics including The National Art Museum of Ukraine, Moscow Art Academy, Zaporizhia Art Museum, Donetsk Art Museum, Sumi Art Museum.

Bibliography
N.Bazhan, History of Ukrainian Painting, 1968
I.Churina, Landscapes of Evgeniy Chuikov, 1971
S.Latanskiy, Evgeniy Chuikov, personal exhibition catalogue, 1985
Artist Rating Encyclopaedia, Volume VII, Moscow, 2006
Matthew Cullerne Bown, A Dictionary of Twentieth Century Russian and Soviet Painters 1900-80s, 1998, Izo