Besedin, Sergei

1901 - 1996

Sergei Besedin was born in the village of Ruska near the Ukrainian city of Lozovaya. He was born into a working class family who were staunch communists. Besedin, shortly after the Revolution, became a worker in the "Galenik" Factory where he proudly worked for the Soviet state. During this time, he began to experiment in art. 

In 1922, Professor Semen Prokhorov (1873-1948) from the then new Kharkov Art Institute visited Besedin and recommended him for acceptance into the Institute. Besedin began his formal art education in 1923 studying under professors Prokhorov, Mikhail Sharonov and Aleksei Kokel. He did participate in a student exhibition in 1927. Besedin graduated in 1929, already viewed by the art world as a very promising young painter. 

Upon his graduation, Besedin accepted a teaching position at the Institute. In the same year, he became a member of the Association of Contemporary Masters of Ukraine (OSMU).  This organization was formed in 1927 in Kiev by discontented members of the Association of Revolutionary Art of Ukraine (ARMU). Besedin and other members were attempting to incorporate elements of modern European art into Soviet easel painting. The OSMU survived until 1932 when it finally dissolved due to continued criticism from proponents of "Socialist Realism." 

During the 1930’s, Besedin became a highly respected artist, principally concentrating in portraiture and drawing. In 1939, he painted "Portrait of the Painter, M. Samokish," his most famous work (Kiev Art Museum.) 

By the early years of World War II, Besedin was so esteemed as an artist that he was evacuated with other Soviet notables to Alma-Ata, Kazakhstan in 1941 prior to the German invasion of Ukraine. During his two years in Alma-Ata, Besedin painted many of his finest works including: 

  "Victory of Fighters", 1941

  "Everybody to Fight for the Motherland", 1941

  "Panfilov’s Division Goes to the Front", 1942

  "Portrait of Partisan Commander S.A. Kovpak", 1943

  "Portarit of Sniper L.M. Pavluchenko", 1943.

 Upon his return to Kharkov in 1943, Besedin resumed his teaching position at the Institute. In 1959, Besedin gifted his "Portrait of Lenin" to the National Museum of East Germany. 

In 1971, for his seventieth birthday, Besedin was given and one-man exhibition at the Kharkov Art Museum. By this time, he has enjoyed an esteemed career as a fine painter and teacher for of 40 years. He was awarded many medals for both, including being named and Honored Artist of Ukraine. 

Besedin is listed in Matthew Bown’s, A Dictionary of Twentieth Century Russian and Soviet Painters.