The portrait was painted by the Ural artist Anatoly Zolotukhin in 1970. At that point in time, the sitter for this portrait Alexander Andreyevich Lysyakov had been discharged from military service and worked as a press photographer for the newspapers “Na Smenu!” and “Komsomolskaya Pravda”, which were important for Sverdlovsk, the capital of the Central Urals. He also collaborated with the publishing houses “Uralsky Rabochiy” and “Uralsky Sledopyt”. His photographs were published in the “Izvestia” newspaper and the “Ogonyok” magazine.
Alexander Lysyakov is portrayed as a confident and successful press photographer, recognized for his unusual and non-trivial shots. He dedicated a significant part of his life to this career. However, a decade after this portrait had been painted, he had a sudden change of heart and decided to become a blacksmith!
In Soviet times, blacksmithing as a handicraft fell into decay, and forges that were operated manually became a rarity, but there were still some craftsmen left to share their methods of hand forging. Alexander Lysyakov decided to engage in the business of his father and uncle. In 1983, with the help of his friends, he began to build a forge, which would become the first and largest forging shop in the Urals.
The forge was located on the shore of Lake Shartash in Sverdlovsk. At first, Lysyakov worked with wrought iron. Later, he began making customized items and collectible weapons, such as Yermak’s saber, King Arthur’s sword, and symbolic daggers. A sword of state was made for the presidential inauguration ceremony. The workshop also recreated an ancient 14th-century staff for the Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus and produced hundreds of exclusive items for museums and famous people around the world. The forge of Alexander Lysyakov, UNESCO academician in folk crafts, united craftsmen of hand forging, engraving, faceting, and woodcarving. The shop also made interior design items, such as stairs, lamps, fireplace accessories, large family tables, and garden furniture.
In addition to photography and blacksmithing, Alexander Lysyakov unlocked his other talents throughout his life, including that of a painter. He specialized in abstract compositions and portraits of famous people.
This extraordinary talent of reinventing himself was captured in the image of the young press photographer housed by the Irbit State Museum of Fine Art.
Alexander Lysyakov is portrayed as a confident and successful press photographer, recognized for his unusual and non-trivial shots. He dedicated a significant part of his life to this career. However, a decade after this portrait had been painted, he had a sudden change of heart and decided to become a blacksmith!
In Soviet times, blacksmithing as a handicraft fell into decay, and forges that were operated manually became a rarity, but there were still some craftsmen left to share their methods of hand forging. Alexander Lysyakov decided to engage in the business of his father and uncle. In 1983, with the help of his friends, he began to build a forge, which would become the first and largest forging shop in the Urals.
The forge was located on the shore of Lake Shartash in Sverdlovsk. At first, Lysyakov worked with wrought iron. Later, he began making customized items and collectible weapons, such as Yermak’s saber, King Arthur’s sword, and symbolic daggers. A sword of state was made for the presidential inauguration ceremony. The workshop also recreated an ancient 14th-century staff for the Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus and produced hundreds of exclusive items for museums and famous people around the world. The forge of Alexander Lysyakov, UNESCO academician in folk crafts, united craftsmen of hand forging, engraving, faceting, and woodcarving. The shop also made interior design items, such as stairs, lamps, fireplace accessories, large family tables, and garden furniture.
In addition to photography and blacksmithing, Alexander Lysyakov unlocked his other talents throughout his life, including that of a painter. He specialized in abstract compositions and portraits of famous people.
This extraordinary talent of reinventing himself was captured in the image of the young press photographer housed by the Irbit State Museum of Fine Art.
