'Paintings-Poems' Reveals Many Sides of Local Artist

By Anna Badkhen
STAFF WRITER

Mikhail Bashakov is a no-nonsense kind of artist.

A songwriter, poet and artist whose first personal art exhibition opened Monday at the Baron von Derviz mansion that also houses the Mayak club, Bashakov writes songs for local boy-turned-rock-star Pavel Kashin, produces commercials for St Petersburg's Radio Baltika and paints at night.

"I paint at home with my sons jumping in the next room," he said, smiling.

The exhibition's opening coincided with the birthday of his oldest son, who turned 10. "The dates did not correspond purposely, but nothing in this world is coincidental," the artist said.

The exhibit, which Bashakov titled "Paintings-Poems," is a collection of 15 1.2 meter by 1.5 meter oil or pastel paintings on canvas, reminiscent of Salvador Dali and Pavel Filonov. In fact, Bashakov mentioned Filonov as one of his favorite artists.

"I admire him because he invented his own style in art," Bashakov said, adding that everything he himself ever "came up with" as a style was the result of his own research and mistakes.

"I never went to any formal art or music school, I have developed my own style myself," he said. "In fact, the high school I went to concentrated in sports, and I had to do no-holds-barred wrestling. After that, I never went back to school."

Despite the fact that he has not received any "formal" education in art, Bashakov's artwork is very complex and colorful. Tree trunks in his paintings transform into human faces, and leaves and flowers turn into little lizard-looking creatures which stare out from the grass.

"I could talk about color and my art style and all that, but I would rather have everyone come and see it," Bashakov said.

According to Bashakov, his art makes him immortal - not only his canvases, but his poetry and music, too. He first became well-known as a musician and songwriter for the band Dukhi (Spirits) in the early '90s, and then as an artist when he designed the cover for one of Kashin's CDs, but he says it is difficult for him to identify himself as simply an artist, or a poet or a musician.

"It is not a matter of what you do, but of people liking what you do," he said.

"Paintings-Poems" by Mikhail Bashakov at the Mayak House of Culture inside the Baron von Derviz Mansion through Dec. 22. 33 Ulitsa Galernaya. Nearest Metro: Sadovaya/Sennaya Ploshchad.

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