Alexander Deyneka

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Alexander Alexandrovich Deyneka (Russian: Александр Александрович Дейнека; May 20, 1899, Kursk - June 12, 1969, Moscow) was a Soviet Russian painter, graphic artist and sculptor. He is one of the most important Russian modernist painters of the the 1st half of the 20th century.

He studied at Kharkov Art College and at VKhUTEMAS. He was a founding member of groups such as OST and Oktyabr, and his work gained wide exposure in major exhibitions. His paintings and drawings (the earliest are often monochrome due to the shortage of art supplies) depict genre scenes as well as labour and often sports. Later Deyneka began painting monumental works, such as The Defence of Petrograd in 1928, which remains his most iconic painting, and The Battle of Sevastopol in 1942, The Outskirts of Moscow. November 1941 and The Shot-Down Ace.

His mosaics are a feature of Mayakovskaya metro station in Moscow. He was awarded the Order of Lenin and the Order of the Red Banner of Labor.

He is buried in the Novodevichye Cemetery in Moscow.

Mosaic at Mayakovskaya

Mosaic at Mayakovskaya