Nikonov Pavel Fedorovich

Pavel Fedorovich Nikonov (born 1930) is a painter, graphic artist, People's Artist of the Russian Federation, laureate of the State Prize of the Russian Federation, and full member of the Russian Academy of Arts. He graduated from the Moscow Secondary Art School (1950) and the Surikov Moscow State Art Institute (1956). In 1957, he was awarded a large silver medal at the World Festival of Youth and Students in Moscow. He was a member of the "Nine" group. In 1985, he received a large gold medal at the International Biennale of Realistic Painting in Sofia. In the early 1970s, he moved away from the "severe style," turning to primitivism and genre painting. The main theme of his work is the life of the modern village, particularly the village of Alexino on the Volga.