First meeting was held, when a boy of twelve, I came to the artist Sergei Nikolaevich Sokolov. At the time, Sokolov studied under Konstantin Korovin, became a member of Moscow Union of Artists, and began to teach a course in drawing Construction Institute and DKSH in the studio.
Sergey was a wonderful teacher. There in my lifetime I never met. He was the most intelligent, and therefore good. To each his pupil treated carefully. Every word finds. The magnificent man he was. He took us to the zoo, where we drew with them all the birds and beasts, drove to the sketches. We have often resisted, but he insisted. Frost - at twenty degrees, shibzikam for twelve years, we run after him like a chicken, and he was in those years was nearly seventy. Lucky us Abramtsevo, dig a hole there in the snow, climb up into it from the wind - and paint. Remarkably it was!
One day Sergey showed me pictures Tolley Zvereva - a boy who had attended, but then left. These were small drawings, images of people and animals, and they were surprisingly impressive. Toll Sergei Nikolaevich brought them in large numbers every week. When I saw them and knew what it all Zverev painted when he was the same age as me, then downright shocked. These pictures were wonderful twelve Tolley!
By the time I had seen a lot of work in the Tretyakov Gallery - and Surikov, and Ivanov, and Repin, and many others. And I was not surprised at all that way, as figures Tolley. I realized then: to have someone to look up to. And the first hurdle in my life put Zverev. I decided that I would work this way and not otherwise.
Sergei N. Tolia valued highly, understood that he had great talent, but still appreciated limited. He believed that a great schedule and Tolia only. Later he told me: "Victor, learn, draw - but remember that the color is all the same color." About Zverev, he did not talk a lot, even though he knew everything about him. The children are often asked: "Princeton sieve of his drawings, show!" I did not ask, but stealthily looked, what he draws. And he drew. Spent whole days at the zoo, went to the Tretyakov Gallery, and all the grandparents, guardian, cloakroom drawing. He was a very workable, and Sokolov his drawings we simply stirred. He told how Tolia, instead of colors (which he often was not) is sometimes used fresh flowers, as it is a crow pecking, when he drew as a child rats ate his drawings.
Once he was offered Tolia, "Sergey, let's you posorevnuemsya." Zverev was then fourteen years old. Sokolov took the challenge and quickly began to draw. Tolia, too. For two hours, Sergey wrote seven sketches and Zverev - twenty-one and large format. Sergey surprised. It's not that jealous, but still ... And something to do with studies Tole was nowhere, and he, without thinking twice, took and left them in the water. There was something like a pond, puddle of some sort. Left and said, "Look how beautiful the water!"
Zverev is in those years, I worshiped as a God. In Sergei Nikolaevich has accumulated a vast collection of drawings Tolya. He died, someone handed her collection, and all this, of course, it would be good to find.
It has been many years since I saw the back of his work. In 1976 an exhibition of Georgian artists in Malaya. She was exposed and three portraits of Zverev. I remember that I particularly liked them. I wanted to see him, could not wait to meet him and my wife Lida, too, the artist. But the meeting did not succeed. Only in 1982 was my personal acquaintance with him. He was brought to my artist Boris Beach. Toll was hoping to spend the night, we stayed three days, but then these relations between us are not wilted, turned out. Maybe because I have not once been able to understand - to understand his life, his destiny.
After this meeting, we had not seen for a long time, and only two years before his death, became friends. Our meeting took place on October Square, when they sold the paint. Ida, bought himself all that is necessary, and suddenly I see - animals! Glad to him: "Timofeitch will place a bottle?" He replied: "Well, put." They came with me. Wives was not at home, drank a bottle of my mummy. Joked been duped in an amicable way, laughing. He roared, brawled. In the morning wake up early, he got up. Behave timidly, shyly. In sober he was a humble, gentle and quiet.
He began to come to us for the day. I watched as I work. I wrote then only large canvases. He sat and watched the clock. I tell my wife: "Let's take away Zvereva to her." Toll ask, and he says: "With pleasure." The artists of "Twenty One" took this idea positively. So we have to communicate constantly. No it from me for three days - already worried been looking for. He would have lived a few days, everyone knew about it and called him to me. When he stayed with us all night, then went to bed never not wanted, "Detul, I'm on a newspaper on the floor." Did not allow himself to lay, but when we specifically bought a cot for him, even then lay on it without undressing. So far we have left this clamshell, and we call it "flip Zverev."
In the morning he got up before anyone else. I started to work, he followed. One says: "Victor, if you will work hard because then you'll die soon." I made no reply. Zverev again its: "Victor, you're such a fool. You write, you write as Colorado potato beetle. Sniffing paint, white light can not see, podohnesh! Mothers (so he called my mom), stop it! "He watched me, watched, and then he started to work.
In between the work we've played with him at checkers, cards. He told me: "Detul, calm down, take your time. Drawing you before a fall. " Sometimes, and "podhvalival": "Victor, what I was doing! We have to work like you. Blooper, blunder, one-time, looked around - and order. " In general, he was able to make fun of. When he did not like someone's work, it is first-voril: "Well, brother, you're a genius. Could not be better. "
Once a month there was no Zverev, someone has lived in the country. Then I said, 'What do you think, where I worked? Three of the entire written. Two still-life painting and drawing. All I do not like it in principle. " Having come to me, started to work again. We wound up like each other. My wife - a witness. It subjects us even invented. Izrisuem we are in the world and ask, "What else to draw?" The whole zoo to remember - a giraffe, kangaroo, zebra ... We was like dancing. Much has been written with him.
One day we went to the Pushkin Museum Tolia. I watched him. Paintings he considered very carefully. Piercing eyes looked. And the people watching. Do not like the others - began to laugh.
Once one has given a realist in the face, saying that he was attacking me - verbally, of course. I said: "Toll for what you did?" He replied: "What he thee Popper?" Realist immediately rushed to the police, but nothing happened.
Aggressiveness, bravado Zvereva was a defensive reaction. He was a man of pure and noble, completely devoid of jealousy. One said: "I was called in America, promised a mansion, a wife, but I'm not tempted. Why? "
He has no one took nothing, gave everything to everyone. He lived and fruit, like a tree.
Source:
http://www.zverevcenter.ru/art.php?func=show&id=18