Painter: Bernadsky Valentin Danilovich

Valentin Bernadsky was born on January 13, 1917 in the village of Ozeryany in the Bobrovitsky district of the Chernigov region. In 1940 he entered the Leningrad Institute of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture in the studio of Boris Ioganson. In 1942, together with other students of the faculty, he was evacuated to Samarkand, where he was drafted into the army. Until 1945 he was at the front, and after demobilization he continued his studies. In 1950 he graduated from the Leningrad Institute of Painting, Architecture and Sculpture. In 1950-1952 he taught at the Crimean Art School named after N.S. Samokisha. In 1958 he became a member of the Union of Artists of Ukraine. In 2003 he held a personal exhibition at the Tretyakov Gallery. Most of the time he lived and worked in Simferopol. He died in September 2011. Among the Crimean painters of the second half of the twentieth century. Valentin Bernadsky has perhaps the largest number of awards, titles and awards. Domestic researchers rightfully consider him one of the founders of the modern Crimean school and the patriarch of Ukrainian painting, while experts from foreign galleries and auction houses rank him among the Russian impressionist painters. He is an Honored Artist of Ukraine, the only one who has been awarded two honorary titles of People's Artist of Ukraine and the Russian Federation, as well as an Honorary Academician of the Russian Academy of Arts.

Since 1951 he has been a participant in city, regional, all-union and international exhibitions. The author's works are in museums and private collections in Ukraine, Russia, USA, France, Hungary, Holland, Great Britain and Japan. Personal exhibitions were held in Paris (Drouot Exhibition Hall), London, Kiev, Sevastopol and Simferopol. The diversity of the Crimean nature inspired the artist to create paintings with a sense of its variability, with striking color transitions and the play of sunlight. The most important thing in his art is the aesthetic perception of life, which he tries to convey through color and flexibility. He created plein air painting, completely surrendering to its beauty. Valentin Bernadsky vividly conveys images, constantly striving for pictorial expressiveness.

• Order of Merit, III degree (August 20, 2007) - for a significant personal contribution to the socio-economic, cultural development of the Ukrainian state, significant labor achievements and on the occasion of the 16th anniversary of Ukraine's independence.
• Order of the Patriotic War II degree.
• Order of the Badge of Honor.
• People's Artist of the Ukrainian SSR (1989).
• Honored Artist of the Ukrainian SSR (1976).
• People's Artist of the Russian Federation (January 27, 2003) - for his great contribution to the development of art and the strengthening of Russian-Ukrainian cultural ties.
• State Prize of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea (1998).
• Honored Artist of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea (2007).
• Gold Medal "For Contribution to World Culture" of the International Fund "Cultural Heritage" (2010).
• Insignia of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea "For loyalty to duty" (2011).