[Peter]

Stepan Himochka born December 25, 1937 in the village Starokazache Belgorod-Dniester region of Odessa oblasti.Otets and grandfather were painters and painted the church, so paint and brushes were always on hand from the detstva.Podrostkom Stepan became interested in copying reproductions of famous paintings and soon filled his hand the paintings of Repin and Kramskogo.Vidya boy that ability, the director of the rural houses of culture gave him a canvas, and after a while the foyer was decorated with a copy of Repin's "The Cossacks Writing a Letter to the Turkish Sultan" about the size of 100h200sm (St.H: "'I was very surprised when I first I saw the original, it was much smaller than I thought "). Once in the village on some business drove a great general of Odessa in the red stripes and a black" Volga. "In DC, he was struck by the picture even more, he was surprised when called at the request of the artist. "General several times with his finger poked it at me, then at the picture, say you? I silently nodded his head." When the author found a high chiefs ordered to give a premium of farmer's monthly salary, and recommended that necessary to go come to Odessa in Odessa Art School of Grekov.