Liteiny Bridge. 2006

Vladimir Rogozin lives in Saint Petersburg and his beloved city is one of his main subjects. He often portrays the facades of its buildings, their colours already heavily worked on by two other distinctive artists - weather and time. “Liteiny Bridge” is one such work. The critic Mikhail German has said about the artist: “He has an uncanny sense of urban scape: he paints the true face of cities without having to add any of the famous ‘landmarks’ that we associate with the likes of Venice, Petersburg or Paris. His vision is so distinct that it gives something new, different and unique to any familiar vista.” Rogozin never puts people into his landscapes. The painter’s eye cuts off unnecessary details and captures instead the shades, the reality and the mood. He has a professional perception of colour and hue, something that is not surprising given that he had been the head of an Ivanovo textile factory for several years. The experience of working with fabric, patterns and colour clearly had an influence on the artist’s touch and style. “His particular striking intonation, his specific subject, his rhythm and vision of the world – all appear in these soft, affectation-free and highly undemonstrative paintings, which have a sense of ease, and even a degree of solemnity,” Mikhail German has said. Rogozin paints Saint Petersburg, the critic notes, “with admiration, melancholy and dedication.”