[Alenka]

There Aleksander Saenko (Saienko). 20x30, Gouache on paper. 20 works
Here is his biography:

1999 was declared "Year of Alexander Saenko," and his name on the UNESCO list of outstanding figures of world culture.

Future artist was born in the city Borzna in 1899 in the family of the first Director of the School of Horticulture, gardening and beekeeping (currently it Borznyansky State Agricultural College) Ferapont Petrovich and Cossack Motrony Ilyinichna. At the time of scarlet fever epidemic swept Ukraine - a boy two years has had the disease and lost his hearing and speech.
Restriction in dealing with people contributed to the fact that he soon learned to read and began reading the book the family library, often visited with his father in the grand estates, where he had seen the best examples of European paintings, tapestries, tiles, porcelain. Subsequently, the teenager showed attraction to draw.

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A good old family friends Saenko - Peter Gay, a son of the glorious artist Nikolai Ge, and writer Anna Periwinkle, the wife of writer Panteleimon Kulish - not only advised to give Sasha in the St Petersburg Imperial School of the deaf, but also assisting in financially. Education develop artistic and craft skills of the future artist. However, unfortunately, his desire to study at the St Petersburg Academy of Arts did not materialize.
Ways to achieve the cherished goal of his dreams for Sasha Saenko were complex. Returning home, he continued his artistic education in his native Borzna - studied at the art studio under the guidance of the pupil of the St Petersburg Academy of Arts Andronicus Lazarchuk.
Then, in September 1917, the guy has successfully passed the examinations in the Kiev Art School. Upon completion of this institution moved to Mirgorod in Art and Industry Institute. And, finally, fate smiled at him: a guy is deaf from the province became a student of the Kiev Art Institute (now the National Academy of Fine Arts and Architecture), and 1928th successfully finished. The teachers were outstanding teachers and masters Vasily Krichevsky and Michael Boychuk.
Among the many artistic currents and trends that arose spontaneously and abundantly in some turbulent times, Alexander Saenko found and began to blaze their own, nationally marked path - he chose to work with straw. This path he will take a lifetime.
Already in his first work of future master testified talent: his art it was based on the development of traditions, that is, rethinking the folk traditions from the perspective of a professional culture ( "Cossack on horseback, in 1922," Ukrainian female portrait, 1925, "Gonchar" , 1926).
An important place in the artist's design took a historic section of the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences in 1928: then created the panel "The Cossack Mama" and "Slaves" - the first time in architecture, interior design has been applied using the technique of mosaic set of straw as a kind of monumental painting classes.
In the 30th years, the wizard creates a tissue engineering vyboyki to show abroad, with a group of colleagues engaged in painting ceramic pots, taking part in animated children's tales. In the mid 30-ies of his works have success at exhibitions in Kiev, Moscow, Leningrad. For the Ukrainian pavilion at the All-Union Agricultural Exhibition in Moscow (1939-1940 years), the artist executed such a panel: "Dance", "apple-picking", "Farmer", "The Birds".
In the postwar years, Alexander Saenko worked on a cycle of works "think of Ukraine, among which the most prominent are: Ivan Sirko," Semen Paliy with a pipe "," Dnieper roars and moans wide, "the Duma of bread", "Golden Ukraine . In 1962 Kiev hosted the first solo exhibition of his works. It was not just an event in the artistic life, but the real discovery.
Talent and artistic achievements of the artist and witnessed a series of subsequent exhibitions. Comes to him recognition as a muralist and fine lyrics. In the 1970th year he was awarded the title of "Honored Artist of the Ukrainian SSR, a studio of popular science films shot in 1974 film" The artist Alexander Saenko.
After hard work in stolitsk, exhibitions, meetings with colleagues and the audience he was returning to the nest to gain strength and inspiration for new designs. After the war he lived mainly in Borzna.
The artist loved this quiet town of Cossack, cherished his garden and his parents' home, where they grew planted oak avenue, and birch, and at the end of the garden - maple grove. Had an artist and a piece of the field where grown rye: grain went to buy bread, and straw - in works of art. Even then he pondered the fate of family farms and dreamed of opening a museum in it.
In 1975 he was awarded the title "People's Artist of Ukraine". And in the late 70's, he returned to work on the decorative panels and pieces of interior appointments: carpets, tarelyami, tissue-vyboykami.
He wants the environment of man was harmonious, aesthetic, expressive of national traits. During the period of artistic maturity 75-year-old artist wrote in his diary: ". All my life I believed that my art is understandable and necessary to the people, because it is inseparable from the aspirations and lives of the Ukrainian people."
In 1984 retrospective summed up 60-year artistic path of the artist. In the 1985th, after a long illness, Alexander Saenko died in Kiev. He was buried at Baykove cemetery. He lived a hard life, and sowed the seeds are good: not only the daughter of Alexander Saenko Nina became an artist. He went through and granddaughter Lesia.