Nikolai Vechtomov

Painter. Born in the family of Yevgeny Vechtomov in Moscow (1923). Fought in the Second World War, including the Battle of Stalingrad (1942–43), escaped twice from a German prisoner-of-war camp. Later drew inspiration from his wartime experiences. Enrolled at the Vasily Surikov Institute of Art in Moscow (1946–49) and the 1905 School of Art after the Vasily Surikov Institute of Art in Moscow was disbanded for Formalism (1949–51). Designer of the Combine of Decorative and Applied Art (from 1951). Member of the Lianozovo group. Fellow student and friend of Vladimir Nemukhin and Lydia Masterkova, whom he joined in the Lianozovo group (mid-1950s). Worked as a designer. Experimented in non-objective painting with patches, lines and textures on small pieces of cardboard (late 1950s–early 1960s). The images of this period can be divided into two styles – Expressionist abstractions and Surrealist landscapes. Often depicted generalised alien landscapes and biomorphic silhouettes in the spirit of Jean (Hans) Arp. Large black-varnish paintings were typical of his mature period. Died in Moscow (2007). Contributed to exhibitions (from 1961), including the Festival of Fine Arts in Sopot in Poland (1966), exhibition at the Beekeeping Pavilion in the Exhibition of Economic Achievements (1975) and a jubilee exhibition at the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow (2005).