“Give me a thousand years, and I will paint the sky...”
IVAN MARCHUK
People’s Artist of Ukraine (1996), laureate of the Taras Shevchenko National Prize of Ukraine (1997), knight of the Order of Freedom, recipient of the presidential National Legend of Ukraine award (2021). Listed in The Daily Telegraph’s Top 100 Living Geniuses of 2007.
Biography
Ivan Marchuk was born on May 12, 1936 in the village Moskalivka of the Ternopil region of Ukraine (at the time Volhynian Voivodeship of the Polish Republic) into a poor peasant family. Ivan Marchuk's father was a well-known weaver throughout the district. Ivan had three sisters. He started drawing as a child.
“There are few pictures that I painted with my head, my mind. They just seem to come to me. It's as if you unwind a ball of visions, and gradually a picture emerges"
Despite the lack of materials, he created art with natural pigments from flower petals, grass and fruits. After seven years of primary school, he studied decorative painting at the Ivan Trush Lviv School of Applied Arts from 1951 to 1956. Marchuk described this period as transformative, thanks to progressive teachers who inspired him to study outside the ideologically safe space of socialist realism. In 1959 he joined an underground group led by one of his teachers, who introduced its members to unauthorized art, history, music, literature and religion. After completing mandatory service in the Soviet army, Marchuk went on to study ceramics at the Lviv Institute of Applied Arts, graduating in 1965. To make money, Marchuk also worked at an organization that made billboards and posters for factories, clubs and theaters. He then moved to Kyiv. From 1965 to 1968 Ivan Marchuk worked at the Institute for Superhard Materials of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine.
From 1968 to 1984 Marchuk made illustrations for Soviet publications at the Kyiv Factory of Monumental and Decorative Art. During this time, experimenting with different artistic forms in search of his own creative method and path in art, he started to create the polystylistic and polythematic series of works “Voice of My Soul”, which will branch off into new series throughout his career.
This period of his life is also when the KGB began to persecute him for his non-conformist leanings, with the repression reaching a peak in the 1970s. The Soviet authorities were particularly concerned with Marchuk’s use of dark colors, which, in their opinion, did not correspond to the typical bright images of socialist realism. In addition to accusations of deviating from socialist realism, the KGB suspected Marchuk of supporting Ukrainian nationalism because he came from Lviv, spoke Ukrainian and painted Ukrainian public figures. Denied membership in the Union of Artists of the USSR, he was unable to participate in exhibitions and sell his works. Marchuk's first exhibition in Kyiv wasn’t until 1980. After he was fired from the Kyiv Factory of Monumental and Decorative Art, the artist began a long period of life abroad. He traveled to Australia in 1988, spent a year in Canada, and lived in the US from 1990 to 2001, where he continued to create paintings.
After the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the US, Marchuk decided to return to Ukraine. Due to the full-scale war started by the Russian Federation in Ukraine in 2022, the artist was forced to leave Ukraine once again and currently resides in the Austrian capital of Vienna. He continues to draw, creating new and supplementing existing series of paintings. Ivan Marchuk's friends and local Ukrainian community in Vienna support the artist by creating the opportunities to exhibit his works for the people to enjoy, which has always been the biggest aspiration of the artist.
Artistry
The range of artistic styles passed through the prism of Marchuk’s unique worldview and transferred onto canvas is phenomenally wide - from primitivism (with clear archetypal features) to realism, hyperrealism, abstractionism, abstract expressionism, surrealism and abstract surrealism. By manipulating proportions, rhythm and color, Marchuk creates subconsciously and influences the subconscious.
Marchuk invented an original technique called “plyontanism” (from the Ukrainian word "plyontaty" - to weave, intertwine, thread) in which paint is applied in thin colored lines that intertwine at different angles, creating the effect of volume and luminescence. Marchuk's style, bordering on man and machine made due to its intricacy and labor intensity, is practically impossible to recreate. He first used this technique in a landscape painting in 1972. Plyontanism became the artist’s signature style – an original way to transfer his perception of the world onto canvas characterized by deformation of images, asymmetry of color and rhythmic contractions of brushstrokes.
Ivan Marchuk has organized his paintings into fifteen series "Voice of My Soul", "Landscape", "Blooming", "Shevchenkiana", "Color Preludes", "Portrait", "Still Life", "New Expressions", "White Planet I", "White Planet II", "Dreams Flooding", "Looking into Infinity", "White and Black. Dialogue", "Blind cycle", "Vienna Rhapsodies".
Throughout his more than 60-year-long career, Ivan Marchuk has held nearly 200 solo and collective exhibitions on 5 continents of the world, and "woven" hundreds of thousands of color and monochromatic kilometers of extraordinary plyontanism in thousands of artistic masterpieces, thus demonstrating the incredible human potential to create art.
The philosophical themes of his paintings convey the dramatic tension experienced by humanity and resonate with the challenges of the modern age. Using art, Marchuk has constructed his personal vision of the world, rooted in high aesthetics and focused on the future, and has offered his own vision of deep philosophical themes of human existence. His works play a powerful role in cultural diplomacy, helping to shape a positive image of Ukraine on the world stage.
Honors and Awards
1997 – Awarded the Taras Shevchenko National Prize of Ukraine
October 2007 – Included in The Daily Telegraph’s list of Top 100 Living Geniuses
June 2016 – Awarded the Order of Freedom in Ukraine
August 2021 – Presented the National Legend of Ukraine Award by the President of Ukraine
A significant event that has left a deep mark on cultural exchanges between Ukraine and the Vatican recently took place in Rome. The great Ukrainian artist Ivan Marchuk visited Rome, where his exhibition "Epic Reality" was opened at the Palazzo della Cancelleria. This exhibition attracted the attention of numerous art aficionados and significant figures from around the world, emphasizing the global significance of the event.On February 12th, a special meeting took place between Ivan Marchuk and Pope Francis, which transcended formality and became a profound and meaningful communication. During the personal audience, the artist shared his reflections on the significance of art in the modern world and on the philosophical themes that predominate in his work. Marchuk discussed how his artworks reflect the pains and hopes of his native Ukraine, which is experiencing difficult times.Pope Francis, known for his interest in cultural diversity and his commitment to peace and justice, expressed deep understanding and empathy for the message conveyed by Marchuk's art. He highlighted that art has the unique ability to connect people of different cultures and beliefs, serving as a bridge between nations and generations.This meeting became a vivid example of how cultural events can serve as a platform for deep mutual understanding and respect between countries and peoples. It left a significant imprint on the minds and hearts of all participants and will inspire many generations to seek peace through the beauty of art.
24.02.2025
Schoolchildren are invited to participate in the First International Drawing Competition. This is a unique opportunity for young talents to showcase their skills and get acquainted with the works of the distinguished Ukrainian artist. The competition is open to children of various age groups. The best entries will be awarded, and the winners will have the opportunity to display their drawings at a special exhibition.Details regarding participation conditions, submission rules, and evaluation criteria can be found at the following link: https://www.ukr-schule.at/uk/workshops/picture-marchuk Take this unique opportunity to be part of a grand artistic project!
12.02.2025
Place of Event: Palazzo della Cancelleria, Rome.Dates: February 10–24, 2025For the first time in Italy – an exhibition of the genius of Ukrainian artIn February 2025, Rome will witness a unique event: a solo exhibition by Ivan Marchuk, a world-renowned Ukrainian artist, whom the British newspaper Daily Telegraph in 2007 included in the list of 100 living geniuses of mankind.This event is an exceptional opportunity for both Italian and international audiences to get acquainted with the Maestro's work, who has held over 200 personal exhibitions across five continents, including in France, Germany, the USA, Australia, and Thailand.About the ExhibitionThe exhibition at Palazzo della Cancelleria will showcase around 60 works of the artist, demonstrating the versatility of his creativity—from portraits to landscapes and surrealistic compositions.Exhibition Curator Giuseppe Ussani d’Escobar notes:"The personal exhibition of Ivan Marchuk in Rome is a unique chance to see the works of the artist. Marchuk's works are filled with mystical light and the vastness of the landscapes of his native Ukraine, while they also carry an intense sacred character in their dialogue with nature and society."His Excellency, the Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Ukraine to the Holy See and the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, Andriy Yurash comments:"It is symbolic and significant that the exhibition of works by one of the most famous contemporary Ukrainian Artists—intentionally capitalized to emphasize the greatness of talent and the uniqueness of Ivan Marchuk's style—is taking place in a cultural-historical space associated with the tradition of the Holy See, especially in the year that Pope Francis declared, according to church tradition, a Jubilee Year. This will be very symbolic, meaningful, as it will be another testimony to the fact that the Ukrainian artistic tradition is not only an integral part of the global cultural space but is also one of its brightest and most valuable components, especially in the context of contemporaneity. It is exceptionally important to reaffirm this once again in Rome—the spiritual and artistic capital of the Christian world and all Eurocentric civilization."Veronika Marchuk, Chair of the Society of Friends of Ukraine, adds:"Exhibitions of Ivan Marchuk are always more than just an acquaintance with his works. It is an opportunity to feel the depth of the Ukrainian soul, its resilience, and inexhaustible potential. Through the Maestro's art, one can understand where Ukrainians draw their strength today."Event OrganizationThe event has been made possible through the cooperation of the Embassy of Ukraine to the Holy See and the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, represented by His Excellency Ambassador Andriy Yurash, and the Society of Friends of Ukraine, an international organization that has been working to support Ukraine for over 20 years. The Society is chaired by Veronika Marchuk, who has been promoting Ukrainian culture for many years, especially the works of Ivan Marchuk.Media partnersBusiness Woman Magazine and ScreenUkraine (London).Inauguration ceremony of the exhibition: February 10, 2025, at 17:00.Practical Information• Dates: February 10–24, 2025• Operating Hours:• Monday – Saturday: 10:00–13:00, 15:00–18:00• Sunday – closed• Address: Palazzo della Cancelleria, Piazza della Cancelleria, 1, Rome.• Admission: FreeAdditionally:The exhibition will be accompanied by its electronic catalog.image.png 9.39 KBimage.png 8.02 KBimage.png 9.99 KBimage.png 6.09 KBFor information:Embassy of Ukraine to the Holy See and the Sovereign Order of Malta+39 06 39378800 +39 3276788826www.vatican.mfa.gov.uaSociety of Friends of Ukraine+48601235695www.tpu.org.pl
28.01.2025
