This next exhibition of Arkady Petrov (b. 1940), who is a classic of contemporary art and one of the leading artists of the 70-s generation, presents his painting of recent years.

All the works exhibited were made in the summer months in the village of Matyushino, of the Tula region, (incidentally, it accords with the surname of one of the most famous masters of the Russian Avant-garde), where, already for many years, Petrov has mainly been creating his works. This is typical practice for Russian artists, the masters professing it are from different generations – from Mihail Larionov to Kirill Mamonov, from Ilya Repin to Nikolay Kasatkin – unobtrusively, but definitely prove by that, that the bustle of the capital’s art-process and the mystery of art are separate processes not dependent on one another. Which, lately, has often been forgotten. The new period in Petrov’s art – and we are talking precisely about the first show of the new period – is bright painting in all senses (one sculptural object, made this summer, is also on show in the gallery). These are original canvases, remarkably intensive in colour, which may be called primitivist (this label is often “stuck” to Petrov’s art) only if we use the same term to denote the whole young, innovatory, expressionistic trend in world art.

Arkady Petrov’s pictures of the last years are stunningly fresh, and noticeable changes in their stylistics occur each year – it is they that are generated by being in “plein air”. The polyptych “Board of Honour”, made out of more than 21 parts, holds a special place amongst these works. However, the artist remains true to himself in what is essential: his themes, as before, are rooted in his impressions of childhood in the mining settlement of the Stalinsk region, in the aesthetics of kitsch of the middle of the XX century – without a doubt, Petrov is its most significant poet in contemporary art.