Artist's Bio

Stas Namin

Stas Namin was born Anastas Alexeevich Mikoyan in 1951 in Moscow, Russia.
He spent his early childhood with his parents, living at military garrisons in the villages and small towns of Ros’, Belarus; Alakurty outside of Murmansk; and Rechlin, East Germany.
In 1957 entered Moscow elementary school No. 74, and four years later, on his father’s insistence, became a cadet of the Moscow Suvorov Military School. While studying there, he heard the music of The Beatles and The Rolling Stones for the first time, experiences which precipitated a life-long love affair with rock music.
Following his passion, young Stas founded the rock bands Magicians (Charodei) in 1964 and Politburo in 1967. And many more.
After enrolling in the Maurice Thorez Moscow Institute of Foreign Languages in 1969, Stas became the lead guitarist of the band Glimmers (Bliki) which was already quite popular in student circles.
In 1983, Namin, at a dead end with his musical career, decided to switch professions. With his friend Alexander Kaidanovsky, he enrolled in graduate courses for screenwriters and movie directors under the tutelage of Goskino of the USSR.
In 1996, Namin achieved renown as a photographer with the resounding success of his inaugural photo exhibit at the Central Exhibition Hall in Moscow (Bolshoi Manezh). His photos were also showcased as individual exhibits at the Central House of Artists in Moscow and at the Russian Museum in St. Petersburg, where catalogs of his photographs were issued.
Namin’s musical creations since 2000 are mostly focused on experimentation with ethnic and symphony music.
In the years since 2000, Namin has seriously indulged in graphic arts. In 2006 at the Bakhrushin Theater Museum he showcased his graphics, paintings, and mixed technique works in which he experimented with computer and other modern technologies. Today his artistic works are displayed in prestigious collections, galleries, and museums in Russia and abroad.