Tradition and Innovation in the Work of Bashkir Artist Talgat Masalimov

Abstract

The article is devoted to the artistic legacy of
Merited Artist of the Republic of Bashkortostan
Talgat Masalimov — painter, graphic artist and
master of decorative applied art. his work is
examined in the article in the context of the
processes taking place in the contemporary
visual arts, marked with an exploration of
new plastic means. The authors regard the
legacy of Masalimov as a vivid example of
the simultaneous influence of folk art, its
symbolism and graphic structure, Eastern
(Turkic) traditions and those of the Russian
avant-garde with its aspiration towards
primitive, laconic, conditional forms. The
article cites examples among works of the artist
created in the technique of graphics, pastel
and artistic felt. At the core of the creation of
these works lies the knowledge of principles of
construction of the composition and depictive
techniques characteristic for the Russian
avant-garde and Early Russian icon-painting and Iranian miniatures, with an absence of
direct associations with any concrete epoch or
artistic direction. The authors see in the work
of the artist a vivid example of the preservation
and expansion of the heritage of the past, its
development and enrichment by means of
contemporary plastic arts.