The artwork measures 8" x 6 ¼", the total size of the sheet is 10 ½" x 8". As is the case with most of Novichenko's art, the lithograph depicts a working scene at a large heavy metallurgy or machine-building plant. The artist's hand signature is under the image in the lower right-hand corner. The notations under the image recording the dates when he applied various colors provide a rare insight into the processes that went into creation of this lithograph.

Note that none of the workers are at the center of Novichenko's attention. The focal point of the image is not Man

The artwork measures 8" x 6 ¼", the total size of the sheet is 10 ½" x 8". As is the case with most of Novichenko's art, the lithograph depicts a working scene at a large heavy metallurgy or machine-building plant. The artist's hand signature is under the image in the lower right-hand corner. The notations under the image recording the dates when he applied various colors provide a rare insight into the processes that went into creation of this lithograph.

Note that none of the workers are at the center of Novichenko's attention. The focal point of the image is not Man but the Machine. While working in the genre of Socialist Realism, he was among the first to turn upside down the old ideologically worn-out approach of the genre to the theme of labor heroes where Man dominated his tools of labor and the entire environment. Here we see an entirely different dynamic between man and his creation.

In excellent condition. The image is pristine, without a single blemish. The margins show no wrinkles, bumps or tears, and are as clean as you would expect from an original work of art.

Valentin Novichenko (Валентин Алексеевич Новиченко, 1927-2010) was a well-known master of graphic arts from the Urals. He was born into a working-class family. His childhood impressions of industry and the construction of the Orsk Metallurgical Kombinat (group of factories) deeply affected his art.

He participated in the Patriotic War and then graduated from the Sverdlovsk School of Arts, which he attended from 1956 to 1961. In 1966 he became a member of the Trade Union of Artists of the USSR and a permanent participant of all-Union exhibitions. From 1953 to 1963 he worked as a decorator at the Uralkhimmash and Uralmash, both of which were gigantic powerhouses of Soviet industry that played an extremely important role in the development of the industrial might of the Soviet Union as well as its defense during the Great Patriotic War. They also played a major role in the development of the city of Yekaterinburg (then Sverdlovsk) and the entire Urals Region.

After the death of the artist in 2010, a number of his exhibitions opened in his native Urals and in Moscow, and well-known collectors are now trying to acquire his works. As is evident from his correspondence with colleagues that is now kept in a private collection, Novichenko had a difficult personality. He never tried to sell his works to collectors or earn favors from the bureaucrats managing arts; he also refused to sell his painting to the managing committees of exhibitions on their terms. He was a tireless innovator, always in search of new materials and techniques, and this consumed his entire life. His lithographs on metal or so-called "poly-etching graphics" that employed various techniques and metal cutting instruments invented by him, make his art truly unique and of enduring value.

Please note that the pen in our photo is for size reference.
$115.00  Add to cart