The People’s Artist of the USSR Vladimir Igoshev was born in 1921 in Bashkiria. The future artist studied in Ufa at the Arts Faculty of the Ufa College of Arts. The People’s Artist of the Bashkir ASSR Ivan Uryadov and an artist Aleksandr Tyulkin, who is considered the founder of the visual art in Bashkortostan, were his mentors.
During the Great Patriotic War Vladimir Igoshev served in the Soviet army as a rifleman. His first fight was in June 1941 near Daugavpils in Latvia. Later he became an artillerist and intelligence man in the 214th Rifle Division. Igoshev participated in fights on the Northwestern, Don and Stalingrad fronts. In 1942 he was seriously wounded during the fight for the Fourth Height not far from Stalingrad. After spending much time in the hospital, he was discharged and sent to Ufa. In 1943 the first solo show with around 60 of his works was organized there. The painter was awarded with two Orders of the Patriotic War, Order of the Red Star, medals For Courage, For the Defence of Stalingrad, For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941-1945, and jubilee medals.
The painting The Farewell Look was based on the artist’s memories of the meeting with his mother before he went to the front. The painting is autobiographical and generalized at the same time. The farewell scene is shown from a high angle, the viewer’s attention is drawn to the mother’s eyes looking at her son, both loving and tragic. The woman’s image is shown in a dramatic manner, as it symbolizes the pain of all mothers.
Vladimir Igoshev recalled: ‘Behind each wartime sketch (and I have a few dozen of them) is a story from the war episode or everyday front life, the faces of my close front-line friends, who have left inerasable marks in my soul. All these sketches and impressions of the unforgettable war days have served me during my work on the paintings At the Well, To the Defenders of the Motherland, The Farewell Look. What I have been through during the war time played a significant role (if not the main one) in their creation.’
During the Great Patriotic War Vladimir Igoshev served in the Soviet army as a rifleman. His first fight was in June 1941 near Daugavpils in Latvia. Later he became an artillerist and intelligence man in the 214th Rifle Division. Igoshev participated in fights on the Northwestern, Don and Stalingrad fronts. In 1942 he was seriously wounded during the fight for the Fourth Height not far from Stalingrad. After spending much time in the hospital, he was discharged and sent to Ufa. In 1943 the first solo show with around 60 of his works was organized there. The painter was awarded with two Orders of the Patriotic War, Order of the Red Star, medals For Courage, For the Defence of Stalingrad, For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941-1945, and jubilee medals.
The painting The Farewell Look was based on the artist’s memories of the meeting with his mother before he went to the front. The painting is autobiographical and generalized at the same time. The farewell scene is shown from a high angle, the viewer’s attention is drawn to the mother’s eyes looking at her son, both loving and tragic. The woman’s image is shown in a dramatic manner, as it symbolizes the pain of all mothers.
Vladimir Igoshev recalled: ‘Behind each wartime sketch (and I have a few dozen of them) is a story from the war episode or everyday front life, the faces of my close front-line friends, who have left inerasable marks in my soul. All these sketches and impressions of the unforgettable war days have served me during my work on the paintings At the Well, To the Defenders of the Motherland, The Farewell Look. What I have been through during the war time played a significant role (if not the main one) in their creation.’
