Vladimir Eifert

Painter, art historian. Born in Saratov in the family of Alexander Eifert (August 1884). Graduated from the Higher Studios of Art and Painting in Astrakhan (1922). Helped to found the Boris Kustodiev Picture Gallery in Astrakhan. Worked for the Communist Party in Saratov (from 1923) and the People’s Commissariat of Education in Moscow (from 1926). Member of Fire-Colour, a group of artists which mostly painted landscapes and still-lifes (1926–28). Painted landscapes, still-lifes and portraits all his life. Member of the Society of Moscow Artists, a group of artists who regarded painting as a way to transform life and upheld profound content and modern painterly forms (1928–31). Befriended Igor Grabar (fellow member of the Society of Moscow Artists). Worked as an antiques expert in the Soviet trade missions to Germany and France (1930s). Director of the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow (1936–39). Member of the Moscow branch of the Union of Artists (1939). Exiled to Karaganda Region as a German national (1941). Lived on the Alexander Pushkin Soviet Farm for several years, before moving to Karaganda. Worked as an artist at the Sergei Kirov Club. Headed a studio of art and taught G. Gilevsky, A. Tsoi and Y. Yevseyev. Died in Karaganda (1960).