VITALIY BUYHASHEV AS AN INNOVATOR OF UKRAINIAN ENCAUSTIC IN THE MONUMENTAL ARTISTIC CONTEXT OF UKRAINE IN THE 1960s–1980s

Abstract

The article provides a comprehensive analysis of the work of the Ukrainian monumental artist Vitalii Pavlovych Buigashev (1938–2023) within the context of the development of monumental art in the 1960s–1980s. It examines the historical and cultural preconditions that shaped his artistic position, the specific features of working within the system of state commissions, as well as the author’s technique of hot encaustic painting. The material and technical aspects of the execution of his works and the issue of their preservation are also explored. Particular attention is paid to the distinctive features of Buigashev’s experimental authorial technique of hot encaustic in his creative works. The artist worked in the techniques of mosaic, stained glass, tempera painting, and memorial compositions. As a monumental artist, he employed various materials and forms; however, encaustic became a space of personal freedom and professional exploration for him. Considerable attention is devoted to the historical and artistic context of Ukrainian monumental art of the 1960s–1980s, which developed under conditions of state regulation of artistic activity. While the system of state commissions defined the thematic and stylistic boundaries of Ukrainian monumental artists, it simultaneously provided opportunities for the realization of large-scale projects. Commissioned works were approved by artistic councils and had to comply with the ideological requirements of the time. The ideological and aesthetic framework of socialist realism significantly limited the thematic scope of V. Buigashev’s monumental works; nevertheless, his authorial compositions were distinguished by monumentality of thinking, plastic depth, distinctive coloristic qualities, and psychological expressiveness of images. The exceptional qualities of the encaustic technique attracted the attention of contemporary monumental artists. Alongside fresco and mosaic, this technique gained popularity in the 1970s–1990s. Painting with waxbased pigments meets the demands of modern art. Due to its durability and resistance to temperature fluctuations, classical hot encaustic does not fade, absorb moisture, or accumulate dirt, and is therefore considered long-lasting. A vivid example of this is the interior wall paintings by Vitalii Pavlovych Buigashev, executed in the technique of hot encaustic.