Saturday, November 8, 2014

The Thought Provoking Paintings Of Peter Panov

By Christa Jarvis


The 1920s were a time when artists gathered in Paris cafes and talked about the revolution that was happening in the world of art and other spheres of life. Artist, Peter Panov, was fascinated by this epoch and it shows in his paintings. This artist was born in Izevsk and graduated from an academy in Moscow where he learned fine art.

He creates memorable characters in his paintings although they also give one the feeling of being familiar. His scenes come from all the ordinary events of daily life and are made special. Men read newspapers, women sit in cafes and drink wine or walk in the street. Jazz musicians, stars of the silver screen and city scenes are all subjects he enjoys painting.

The artist paints mainly with acrylics but also creates some mixed media works. He uses cubism in his work and this is perhaps what gives it a modern feel. Some of his paintings are almost collage-like. He favors using newsprint and newspapers appear in many of his works. His flat figures and panes of color are typical of cubism. However, his sophisticated use of colors creates depth and interest.

His canvas is filled with intricate details and he juxtaposes elements in unexpected ways. Large figures of musicians are seated in the sky playing their instruments with the city below them. Others stand alongside buildings and almost seem part of them. This makes one wonder about whether the inhabitants are molded by the city or whether they create its image around them.

The textures are created with the use of palette knife and brush and colors are combined in a sophisticated manner. He takes the routine of city life and manages to capture moments in time to tell a story. Someone moves behind the curtains, a woman battles against the wind in the street with her umbrella, two lovers embrace in a telephone booth and a woman sits at a cafe applying her lipstick with a small mirror.

Josephine Baker, an icon of the 1920s appears in some of his paintings. She was an actress, dancer and singer who became famous for her daring outfits and dance routines. Mary Pickford, probably the most famous movie star of the time, is another subject he chose to portray.

The artist enjoys painting crowd scenes. In many of his crowd scenes, men face away from the viewer. They all wear suits and hats and some are shown reading newspapers. These men in the crowd all appear the same yet on closer examination they are all subtly different. The artist manages to depict our commonality and individuality in this way.

The works of this artist are available for purchase from online galleries. His fans eagerly await his latest paintings. They love them for their intricacy and narrative detail. These works go far beyond the mere creation of images on canvas, having a depth and a timeless quality to them.




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