Elena Mikhailovna Kostenko (; 9 August 1926 – 26 September 2019) was a Soviet Russian painter, living and working in Saint Petersburg, a member of the Saint Petersburg Union of Artists (before 1992 the Leningrad branch of Union of Artists of Russian Federation),Directory of Members of the Union of Artists of USSR. Volume 1.- Moscow: Soviet artist, 1979. - p.547. regarded as one of the major representatives of the Leningrad school of painting,Sergei V. Ivanov. Unknown Socialist Realism. The Leningrad School.- Saint Petersburg: NP-Print Edition, 2007. – pp. 9, 15, 362, 389-402, 404-407, 445. most famous for her portrait paintings.
Biography Elena Mikhailovna Kostenko was born on 9 August 1926 in Leningrad. Her father, Mikhail Kostenko, was an Academician of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, one of the major organizers of Soviet science.Elena Mikhailovna Kostenko. Exhibition catalogue. – Leningrad: Khudozhnik RSFSR, 1986. - p.3.
In 1938, Elena Kostenko entered at the Leningrad Secondary Art School under the All-Russian Academy of Arts, which is trained with a break until 1946.Elena Mikhailovna Kostenko. Exhibition catalogue. – Leningrad: Khudozhnik RSFSR, 1986. - p.6. Her teachers were Leonid Ovsyannikov, Alexander Zaytsev, Leonid Sholokhov, Alexander Debler, Vladimir Gorb. Together with Elena Kostenko in Leningrad Secondary Art School studied many well known in the future Russian artists and sculptors including Mikhail Anikushin, Evgenia Antipova, Vladimir Chekalov, Abram Grushko, Iya Venkova, Maya Kopitseva, Anatoli Levitin, Oleg Lomakin, Nina Veselova, Vecheslav Zagonek, Alexei Eriomin, Marina Kozlovskaya, Yuri Tulin, Victor Teterin, and others.Sergei V. Ivanov. Unknown Socialist Realism. The Leningrad School.- Saint Petersburg: NP-Print Edition, 2007. – p.15.
The creative atmosphere that prevailed in those years in Leningrad Secondary Art School met the aspirations of its pupils. Teachers inculcated a taste and love for true art, and encouraged creative impulses from actual life. This reflected a realistic direction of the Leningrad School of painting.
In 1946, after graduating from Secondary Art School Elena Kostenko enters the first year of painting faculty of the Leningrad Institute of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture named after Ilya Repin. She studied of Semion Abugov, Yuri Neprintsev, Mikhail Platunov, Andrei Mylnikov.
In 1952 Elena Kostenko graduated from Leningrad Institute of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture named after Ilya Repin in Viktor Oreshnikov personal Art Studio, together with Irina Baldina, Boris Lavrenko, Vladimir Chekalov, Boris Korneev, Abram Grushko, Oleg Lomakin, Alexei Eriomin, Marina Kozlovskaya, and well-known other artists. Her graduation work was genre painting "Future Builders. Kindergarten".Anniversary Directory graduates of Saint Petersburg State Academic Institute of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture named after Ilya Repin, Russian Academy of Arts. 1915–2005. - Saint Petersburg: Pervotsvet Publishing House, 2007. p.68. Close creative communication and friendship with them will remain at Elena Kostenko for many years.
Since 1952, Elena Kostenko begins to participate in art exhibitions of Leningrad artists. Her first exhibition was the demonstration of graduates of Repin Institute of 1952.Exhibitions of Soviet art. Directory. Volume 4. 1948–1953. – Moscow: Soviet Artist, 1973. In the spring of the next year, she participates in citywide "Spring exhibition of works by Leningrad artists of 1953" with its first independent creative work -"A Portrait of sculptor A. Kryzhanovskaya" (1953). A work has been featured, it was placed in the reproduction of exhibition catalogue.The Spring Exhibition of works by Leningrad artists of 1953. Catalogue. – Leningrad: Leningrad Union of Soviet Artists, 1953. - p.6,26.
Since then, the portrait has become a leading genre for Elena Kostenko. In different years, she was carried away working on still lifes, landscapes, and genre scenes. But the greatest fame and recognition would come from her portraits of contemporaries – men of science and art, as well as children's images. Among the portraits created by Elena Kostenko in 1950–1970 are "Portrait of actress Galina Korotkevich" (1956),The Fall Exhibition of works by Leningrad artists of 1956. Catalogue. – Leningrad: Leningrad artist, 1958. - p.14. "Portrait of A. Shennikov, Academician of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR" (1960),Exhibition of works by Leningrad artists of 1960. Exhibition catalogue. – Leningrad: Khudozhnik RSFSR, 1961. - p.22. "Portrait of P. Baranov, Academician of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR" (1961),Exhibition of works by Leningrad artists of 1961. Exhibition catalogue. – Leningrad: Khudozhnik RSFSR, 1964. - p.22. "Portrait of M. Kostenko, Academician of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR" (1963),The Leningrad Fine Arts Exhibition. - Leningrad: Khudozhnik RSFSR, 1965. - p.27. "Portrait of artist Mikhail Platunov" (1972),Our Contemporary The Second Exhibition of works by Leningrad artists of 1972. Catalogue. -Leningrad: Khudozhnik RSFSR, 1973. - p.9. "Portrait of Academician V. Sochava" (1976),The Portrait of Contemporary the Fifth Exhibition of works by Leningrad artists of 1976. Catalogue. – Leningrad: Khudozhnik RSFSR, 1983. - p.12. and others.
During these years, Elena Kostenko many painted children and youth, with interest continuing the theme begun in graduation picture. Among the works created by her "Portrait of schoolgirl Ira Zykova" (1953),The Spring Exhibition of works by Leningrad artists of 1954. Catalogue. – Leningrad: Izogiz, 1954. - p.12. "After the Bathing" (1964), "Portrait of Lena Molteninova" (1975), "Katya" (1960) and "Mikhail" (1960),Exhibition of works by Leningrad artists of 1960. Exhibition catalogue. – Leningrad: Khudozhnik RSFSR, 1963. - p.12. "Friends" (1974),Our Contemporary regional exhibition of Leningrad artists of 1975. Catalogue. - Leningrad: Khudozhnik RSFSR, 1980. - p.17. "Morning" (1967),Vern G. Swanson. Soviet Impressionism. – Woodbridge, England: Antique Collectors' Club, 2001. - pp.40,44. and others.
As models for her portraits Elena Kostenko often elect their relatives, especially her sons Vladimir and Michael. This allows to convey in the work of a special "thrill of life", to achieve full contact between artist and model, as well as of a certain view of man, which in the opinion of Elena Kostenko is the most important in the art of portrait.Elena Mikhailovna Kostenko. Exhibition catalogue. – Leningrad: Khudozhnik RSFSR, 1986. - p.4. Among them are works "Offended" (1963),Sergei V. Ivanov. Unknown Socialist Realism. The Leningrad School.- Saint Petersburg: NP-Print Edition, 2007. - p.121. "Winter Morning" (1964), "Portrait of son" (1969), "Students" (1977),Elena Mikhailovna Kostenko. Exhibition catalogue. – Leningrad: Khudozhnik RSFSR, 1986. - p.5. fairly attributable to the undoubted success of the author.
Elena Kostenko was a member of Saint Petersburg Union of Artists (before 1992 named as the Leningrad branch of Union of Artists of Russian Federation) since 1953. Her personal exhibitions were in Belgorod (1981, together with Marina Kozlovskaya) and in Leningrad (1986). In 1989–1992 her paintings were exhibited at the exhibitions and auctions of Russian paintings L'Ecole de Leningrad and others in France, Belgium, United Kingdom.
Paintings by Elena Mikhailovna Kostenko reside in Art museums and private collections in the Russia, France, Japan, Italy, in the U.S., England, and throughout the world.
See also Leningrad School of Painting List of Russian artists List of 20th-century Russian painters List of painters of Saint Petersburg Union of Artists Saint Petersburg Union of Artists
References
Principal exhibitions
1954 (Leningrad): The Spring Exhibition of works by Leningrad artists of 1954, with Evgenia Antipova, Nikolai Baskakov, Sergei Frolov, Nikolai Galakhov, Vladimir Gorb, Maya Kopitseva, Boris Korneev, Elena Kostenko, Anna Kostrova, Gevork Kotiantz, Valeria Larina, Boris Lavrenko, Ivan Lavsky, Gavriil Malish, Alexei Mozhaev, Nikolai Mukho, Samuil Nevelshtein, Yuri Neprintsev, Sergei Osipov, Lev Russov, Ivan Savenko, Vladimir Seleznev, Arseny Semionov, Alexander Shmidt, Elena Skuin, Victor Teterin, Nikolai Timkov, Mikhail Tkachev, Leonid Tkachenko, Vecheslav Zagonek, and other important Leningrad artists. 1956 (Leningrad): The Fall Exhibition of works by Leningrad artists of 1956, with Piotr Alberti, Taisia Afonina, Vsevolod Bazhenov, Irina Baldina, Nikolai Baskakov, Yuri Belov, Piotr Belousov, Piotr Buchkin, Sergei Frolov, Nikolai Galakhov, Vladimir Gorb, Abram Grushko, Alexei Eriomin, Mikhail Kaneev, Marina Kozlovskaya, Tatiana Kopnina, Maya Kopitseva, Boris Korneev, Alexander Koroviakov, Elena Kostenko, Nikolai Kostrov, Anna Kostrova, Gevork Kotiantz, Yaroslav Krestovsky, Ivan Lavsky, Oleg Lomakin, Dmitry Maevsky, Gavriil Malish, Alexei Mozhaev, Nikolai Mukho, Samuil Nevelshtein, Sergei Osipov, Vladimir Ovchinnikov, Lev Russov, Ivan Savenko, Gleb Savinov, Vladimir Seleznev, Alexander Semionov, Arseny Semionov, Yuri Shablikin, Boris Shamanov, Alexander Shmidt, Nadezhda Shteinmiller, Victor Teterin, Nikolai Timkov, Mikhail Tkachev, Mikhail Trufanov, Yuri Tulin, Piotr Vasiliev, Igor Veselkin, Rostislav Vovkushevsky, Vecheslav Zagonek, Ruben Zakharian, Sergei Zakharov, and other important Leningrad artists. 1958 (Leningrad): The Fall Exhibition of works by Leningrad artists of 1958, with Taisia Afonina, Irina Baldina, Evgenia Baykova, Vsevolod Bazhenov, Piotr Belousov, Yuri Belov, Zlata Bizova, Sergei Frolov, Nikolai Galakhov, Elena Gorokhova, Abram Grushko, Alexei Eriomin, Mikhail Kaneev, Marina Kozlovskaya, Tatiana Kopnina, Boris Korneev, Alexander Koroviakov, Elena Kostenko, Nikolai Kostrov, Anna Kostrova, Gevork Kotiantz, Yaroslav Krestovsky, Valeria Larina, Boris Lavrenko, Ivan Lavsky, Piotr Litvinsky, Oleg Lomakin, Dmitry Maevsky, Gavriil Malish, Alexei Mozhaev, Evsey Moiseenko, Nikolai Mukho, Anatoli Nenartovich, Yuri Neprintsev, Dmitry Oboznenko, Sergei Osipov, Vladimir Ovchinnikov, Nikolai Pozdneev, Alexander Pushnin, Maria Rudnitskaya, Galina Rumiantseva, Lev Russov, Ivan Savenko, Gleb Savinov, Alexander Samokhvalov, Arseny Semionov, Alexander Semionov, Yuri Shablikin, Boris Shamanov, Alexander Shmidt, Nadezhda Shteinmiller, Elena Skuin, Alexander Sokolov, Nikolai Timkov, Yuri Tulin, Ivan Varichev, Anatoli Vasiliev, Piotr Vasiliev, Igor Veselkin, Vecheslav Zagonek, and other important Leningrad artists. 1960 (Leningrad): Exhibition of works by Leningrad artists of 1960, with Piotr Alberti, Evgenia Antipova, Taisia Afonina, Genrikh Bagrov, Vsevolod Bazhenov, Nikolai Baskakov, Zlata Bizova, Nikolai Galakhov, Vladimir Gorb, Abram Grushko, Alexei Eriomin, Mikhail Kaneev, Mikhail Kozell, Marina Kozlovskaya, Boris Korneev, Alexander Koroviakov, Elena Kostenko, Nikolai Kostrov, Anna Kostrova, Gevork Kotiantz, Yaroslav Krestovsky, Boris Lavrenko, Ivan Lavsky, Oleg Lomakin, Dmitry Maevsky, Alexei Mozhaev, Evsey Moiseenko, Nikolai Mukho, Andrey Milnikov, Piotr Nazarov, Vera Nazina, Mikhail Natarevich, Samuil Nevelshtein, Dmitry Oboznenko, Sergei Osipov, Nikolai Pozdneev, Maria Rudnitskaya, Vladimir Sakson, Alexander Samokhvalov, Alexander Semionov, Arseny Semionov, Yuri Shablikin, Boris Shamanov, Alexander Shmidt, Elena Skuin, Alexander Sokolov, Alexander Stolbov, Victor Teterin, Nikolai Timkov, Yuri Tulin, Ivan Varichev, Rostislav Vovkushevsky, Vecheslav Zagonek, Ruben Zakharian, and other important Leningrad artists.