All realistic,
figure and abstract compositions, portraits,
cameral, genre and monumental works by the sculptor
are united with one and the same theme – study
of the life of Spirit, quest for it, its birth
and acquisition, which transform man, transform
human personality. This unity of the categorical
imperative free of creative contradictions,
stands perfectly evident both in master’s work
at a classical portrait or a study, and in monumental
sculpture which is abstracted from actual realia.
The sacral quest of ‘eternal spiritual vitality’
of the image, object or theme determines the
rendering of the work in shape and in style.
Understanding and accepting this position in
the art of Yevdokimov explains the emergence
of such seemingly stylistically different pieces
as «Mystery» (Sweden) and «Monument to Nurse
of Great Patriotic War» (Khimki, Moscow Region).
Beginning in
the 1970es, Yevdokimov created in interior sculpturing
an impressive series of compositions which unite
elements of both realistic and non-figurative
art – «Ferapontovo», «Steps», «Family», «Cathedral».
«Cosmos» and other pieces. These compositions
are a quintessence of the sculptor’s creative
principles, of his understanding of the language
of modern sculpture. Their compositional rendering
– «space in sculpture» and «sculpture of space»
- is based upon shape, rhythm, movement, interaction
of the density of the sculpturing material and
air, and of natural surrounding. The sculptor
never stops to study their interaction, exploiting
their introvert and extravert advantages («Concert
of S. Richter», «Ascension», «Conversation»,
«Cosmos» and other works), he seeks for some
«sacral space» of the plastic composition.
V. Yevdokimov
virtually has no static compositions, all of
his works feature the motif of movement, flight,
«hovering...» It is evident that in his art
this sculpturing, spatial and emotional kinetics
is the absolute dominant feature, his tuning-fork.
It is the motif of spiral that becomes, directly
or otherwise, the foundation of the compositional
architectonics in his interior, monumental and
drawing works. The physical and virtual dynamics
of this geometric model creates spatial and
dramatic tension in the composition. In the
‘Infinity’ monumental composition, movement,
progressing along a spiral, becomes the subject
and, at the same time, the architecture of the
piece. This sculpturing rendition is found also
in certain portraits and drawings.
The artist
travels infinitely from the two-dimensional
space of drawing into three-dimensional space
of sculpture. Artist’s earlier works are fully
academic. In the works of the latter decades
we see the same kinetics that is a property
of his sculpturing. V. Yevdokimov has introduced
into the genre of the classical art of drawing
the principle of multiplication – by fixating
the physical and actual kinetics of the sitter
within the confines of the drawing sheet. It
is captured movement rather than depiction of
the sitter, that becomes the intent of the work.
L. Yevdokimova
