Village old people in soulful paintings by the Ural artist Leonid Baranov (38 photos)

There is an endless appeal in the works of Leonid Baranov, which comes from his soulful elders, who warm us with their love, bright eyes and warm smiles.

The art of artist Leonid Pavlovich Baranov comes from his childhood, from the village of Bobylevo, where he lived before the army with his grandmother Maria Egorovna. All his paintings are dedicated to simple village life and a couple of bright, happy old people glowing with kindness. Looking at the serenely smiling heroes, the audience themselves brighten and become kinder.

Leonid Baranov was born in 1955 in the Kurgan region. The family loved painting, but dad, an accountant, dreamed that his son would follow in his footsteps. By the way, the artist’s mother began painting at the age of 80.

After graduating from an industrial technical school, Leonid worked in Chukotka, served in the army and went to work at a factory, where he quit after learning that he had a heart defect. At the age of 24 he entered the Sverdlovsk Art School. Shadra. But the diagnosis was later not confirmed.

During his studies, Leonid was fascinated by the works of Borges filled with mythological characters. He didn’t think about village landscapes and portraits then. The widely known cycle “Once upon a time there was a grandfather and a woman” began with a painting in which an old woman was eating in prison. She very soon found her buyer, and soon many other works by the artist appeared, inspired by revived childhood memories.