“I accepted that which determined my fate with gratitude, and my answer to her mercifulness was painting..." Petr Ossovski

Petr Petrovich Ossovski was born on May 18, 1925, in the village of Malaya Viska, Ukraine. His was a military family. They moved frequently throughout his youth. In 1936, the Ossovski family settled in Moscow. In 1940, he entered the Moscow secondary art school, where he subsequently studied for four years.

In 1944, Petr entered the Surikov Art Institute and was assigned to the studio of the People's Artist, Professor S. V. Gerasimov, who greatly influenced the formation of Ossovski's artistic priorities and strengthened the young artist's interest in monumental forms and realist art.

In addition to Gerasimov the artist's teachers included Maksimov, Mochalsky, Kostin, Chekmazov, and Favorsky. The artist has said: "I studied with such a master as Sergei Gerasimov. And yet I say: I learned from my friends no less than from him. We were taking hold in our views on the tasks of art and on the means of solving these problems".

Ossovski graduated from the Surikov Institute in 1950. His diploma work was devoted to the theme of sports. Passionate about football, sports were significant throughout his life.

Perpetually, in search of new experiences, he often biked in and around Moscow seeking secluded locations where he could calmly, peacefully work in nature.

Ossovski began to participate in exhibitions of young artists in 1954. The artist later stated: "According to my own feelings and experience, I know how much these annual exhibitions of young artists meant to us. For my friends and myself, it was serious schooling to prepare for these exhibitions, to discuss it afterwards, to exchange our views… The exhibitions brought up young people's attitude to art and life. There was independence; there was a determination to express in your own way what you feel and what you have experienced. The exhibition gave a feeling of comradeship".

Ossovski joined the Union of Artists of the USSR in 1956.

In 1961, he traveled to Cuba and Mexico. This creative trip greatly impacted his artistic vision and enriched his work with new colour schemes. Ossovski has recalled: "It was a beautiful and difficult trip to the "Island of Freedom", as it was then called, which allowed me to feel and understand a lot in the human and creative sense. I spent more than a month with Viktor Ivanov in the atmosphere of the revolutionary spirit of the Cuban people, from the leaders and romantic leaders to ordinary soldiers, peasants, workers, men and women. It was in Cuba that I completed the drawing course and gained invaluable experience, so necessary for my further work".

From trips to Cuba and Mexico, Ossovski brought home numerous sketches and drawings, landscapes and portraits, as well as ideas for a subsequent work, which evolved into a thematic series. The artist's solo exhibition "Mexico", was held in 1964 traveling to Leningrad, Moscow, Warsaw, and Volgograd. It was wildly popular with both critics and the general public.

Petr joked about his deep immersion in the topic: "I had mastered the "Mexican" role so much, that then, working on the series people of Siberia, I painted Russian people with Mexican facial features".

Ossovski found his true home in the ancient land of Pskov. The artist arrived in Pskov for the first time in 1966. Being in a constant creative search, Petr had traveled through villages, Moscow's suburbs, Suzdal, Vladimir, Cuba and Mexico to Pskov where he discovered his central theme.

Being forty years of age, Ossovski was reconsidering his creative life and reassessing his values. The theme of heritage, as well as the historical and cultural roots of the people, became increasingly prominent in the works of Ossovski from the early 1970s until his death.

Other essential episodes of the artist's life, which are strongly reflected in his work include trips to Siberia, Altai (1957, 1959) and Baikal-Amur (1979).

In 1979, Ossovski was awarded the gold medal of the Italian Academy of Arts for a series of paintings titled "Slavic portraits".

At that time, the artist was traveling extensively throughout Europe including multiple trips to Italy, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, and Slovakia. Ossovski was keenly interested in the lifestyles of other countries and peoples. By the early 1970s, the artist was increasingly focusing on the image of the landscape. Ossovski has stated: "the territory of my creativity expands from the shores of Lake Baikal to the waters of the Caribbean Sea".

The artist's solo exhibitions were held in Russia (Moscow, 1964, 1978, 1983, 1985), Poland (1965), Italy (1966), Czech Republic (1975), Slovakia (1975), Finland (1984), Germany (1987), and Spain (1992). In 2008, the artist was awarded the title of "Honorary citizen of the city of Pskov".

“I am endlessly grateful to fate for my experiences on the path as a Russian artist - a greater honor and status does not exist for me.”

Ossovski died at the age of ninety years on August 1, 2015 in Pskov and was buried in Izborsk.

His works are included in the permanent collections of the State Tretyakov Gallery, the State Russian Museum, as well as in many large museums in Russia and the countries of the former Soviet Union. Ossovski's works are held in private collections in Egypt, Israel, Venezuela, Germany, Slovakia, England, Italy, Spain, Finland, USA, Japan, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic and Poland.

Petr Ossovski

Slovak Girl