Artist's Bio

Tatyana Nazarenko

Born in Moscow, Russia.
1962 – Graduated from the Moscow Secondary Art School at the Surikov Art Institute, Moscow.
1968 – Graduated from the Surikov State Institute of Fine Arts, Moscow.
1969 – Joined the Union of Artists of the Soviet Union.
1972 – Recipient of the Prize of the Moscow Komsomol.
1987 – Silver Medal awarded by the Academy of Fine Arts of the Soviet Union.
1993 – Winner of the State Prize of Russia in Fine Arts.
1998 – Associate of the Russian Academy of Fine Arts.
1999 – Professor, Head of Department of the Surikov State Institute of Fine Arts, Moscow.
1999 – Recipient of the Moscow Government Prize.
2001 – Full Member of the Russian Academy of Fine Arts, Board Member.
2003 – Honored Artist of the Russian Federation.
Tatyana Nazarenkocurrently resides in Moscow.
The Union of Artists of the USSR - an organization known for its rigid insistence on Social Realism - shaped the artists’ style and content.
More recently, during détente, modernism gradually, once again, became a possible source for artists.
Nazarenko’s work shows evidence of both eras. She is a realist depicting Russian life in tableaus, which allegorically weave a more critical narrative—a familiar strategy of artists working under an imposed aesthetic.
Nazarenko’s work pushes beyond description to explore the paradoxes of contemporary life. In each piece, there is a sense of the familiar. They are the vignettes of contemporary Russia, depicting ordinary people in public places. The impassive faces of her subjects are not those of heroes but are scenes drawn from real life.