"THE SOFT KIND WORLD OF IVAN KOULAKOV"


From an early age Ivan Koulakov was profoundly influenced by his father's own interest in the fine arts. In fact, Yury Koulakov a professor of physics at the Novosibirsk State University, Siberia, Russia is well known as an outstanding scholar and connoisseur of the fine arts.

Koulakov creates his artwork every day in his mind and in his soul, it is born into him. His exploration is a journey not only into his vast knowledge of the fine arts but also into his heart. It is an emotional and intimate quest searching for the ultimate expression of life itself. Whether it is a musical sound or a visual movement, it is always conveyed to design in his mind and then simultaneously created as a true art form.

The importance of each painting is that it is an original work of art containing a certain mystery that can not be expressed by ordinary prose and which can only become self realized through careful study and meditation. The uniqueness of these paintings is in their academic application of lines, and touches of color to form a composition in which the artwork contradictions itself accentuating the essence of its dynamic subject matter.

Personages play an important role in the artist's work. Calm and relaxing faces contrast with the extremely stressed lines of bodies which coexist with soft sarcasm, tragedy, irony and humor. The treatment of the medium is similarly fashioned with the accentuation of smooth and tender watercolors that harmonize with the dramatic sharp swatches of Indian Ink and flat textures of gouache. All these elements coming together create an emotional feeling toward humanity and provoke our inner most thought processes.

The creation of fine art is as big a mystery as life itself. Where does a thought or idea come from? It is not as simple as telling a story. Although, even the creation of a story is in itself, a mystery. Yet, every piece of artwork that is created has a story to tell. Ivan's artwork is profoundly and spiritually melodic yet, at the same time it is terrestrial and human. It does not matter whether the artwork is abstract or realistic it is the ultimate and oldest form of human expression.