Georgy Guryanov
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Georgy (Gustav) Konstantinovich Guryanov (; 27 February 1961 – 20 July 2013) was a Soviet and Russian musician and artist. From 1984 to 1990, Guryanov was the drummer, arranger, and backing vocalist in Kino and participant in Sergey Kuryokhin's Pop Mechanics. From 1990 to 2013, Guryanov worked as an artist. From 1993, he was an honorary professor at the New Academy of Fine Arts () in
Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...
. In the 1990s and 2000s, Guryanov was considered a celebrity in Saint Petersburg and a famous Russian
dandy A dandy is a man who places particular importance upon physical appearance and personal grooming, refined language and leisurely hobbies. A dandy could be a self-made man both in person and ''persona'', who emulated the aristocratic style of l ...
.


Biography

Georgy Guryanov was born on 27 February 1961 in the maternity hospital of the
Petrogradsky District Petrogradsky District () is a administrative divisions of Saint Petersburg, district of the federal cities of Russia, federal city of Saint Petersburg, St. Petersburg, Russia. It borders the Bolshaya Nevka River in the north and in the east ...
,
Leningrad Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...
to Konstantin Fedorovich (6 July 1914 - 26 October 1993) and Margarita Vikentievna (22 December 1924 - 9 February 2013), both geologists. Even before school, he began to study music at the Kozitsky
Palace of Culture Palace of Culture (, , ''wénhuà gōng'', ) or House of Culture (Polish: ''dom kultury'') is a common name (generic term) for major Club (organization), club-houses (community centres) in the former Soviet Union and the rest of the Eastern bloc ...
, where he learned to play the
balalaika The balalaika (, ) is a Russian string instrument, stringed musical instrument with a characteristic triangular wooden, hollow body, fretted neck, and three strings. Two strings are usually tuned to the same note and the third string is a perf ...
,
domra The ''domra'' (Cyrillic: до́мра, ) is a long-necked Belarusian, Russian, and Ukrainian folk string instrument of the lute family with a round body and three or four metal strings. History The first known mention of domra is in ''Admoni ...
,
piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...
, and
guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
. From 1974 to 1976, Guryanov studied at secondary school No. 363 in Kupchino. In 1975, he graduated from the city art school No. 1. In 1976, he entered the V. A. Serov Leningrad Art School (), but left the school after a year. Guryanov lived in
Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
for part of the late 1970s and early 1980s. Starting in the late 1980s, Guryanov traveled substantially. He visited
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
,
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
,
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
,
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
,
Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...
,
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
,
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, Cadaques, and lived for long periods in
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
,
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, and
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
(having studied Spanish since 1993). He called
St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...
,
Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
, and
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
his favorite cities. In his final years, he lived and worked on
Liteyny Avenue Liteyny Avenue (, ''Liteyny prospekt'') is a wide avenue in the Central District of Saint Petersburg, Russia. The avenue runs from Liteyny Bridge to Nevsky Avenue. The avenue originated in 1738 when the forest was cleared to make a trail from ...
in St. Petersburg.


Music

From 1978 to 1979, Guryanov played bass guitar in Sergey "Sam" Semyonov's band. In 1983, he briefly played in Andrey "Swine" Panov's punk group, Avtomaticheskie udovletvoriteli. In 1985, he helped record the drum parts for the band Narodonoe opolcheniye's () album ''Novogodiye'' (). In the mid-1980s, he was the drummer for the band Igry (). In 1982, Guryanov met
Viktor Tsoi Viktor Robertovich Tsoi (, ; 21 June 1962 – 15 August 1990) was a Russian singer-songwriter and actor who co-founded Kino, one of the most popular and influential bands in the history of Russian music. Born and raised in Leningrad (mode ...
. From 1984, he started playing in Kino as a drummer, arranger, and backing vocalist. Guryanov was distinguished by his manner of playing on the drum kit while standing. In the 1980s, he was nicknamed "Gustav". In the 1980s, Guryanov also began to collaborate with the duo New Composers (), pioneers in the field of electronic music in the USSR. In the second half of the 1980s, musicians from Kino and New Composers collaborated on the album ''Start''. In 1984, together with
Timur Novikov Timur Petrovich Novikov (September 24, 1958 – May 23, 2002) was a Russian visual artist, designer, art theorist, philosopher, and musician. He is considered one of the most influential proponents of Nonconformist Art before and after the dis ...
and Igor Verichev, Guryanov performed in the "Ballet of Three Lovebirds" by
Daniil Kharms Daniil Ivanovich Kharms (;  – 2 February 1942) was a Russian avant-gardist and absurdist poet, writer and dramatist in the early Soviet era. Early years Kharms was born as Daniil Yuvachev in Saint Petersburg, then the capital of the Ru ...
to the music of New Composers. From 1985, he was part of the industrial group of Sergey Kuryokhin's Pop-Mechanics, in which he also participated as a drummer and vocalist. Guryanov played in Kino until the band's break-up following Tsoi's death in August 1990. At the time of Tsoi's death, according to Guryanov, the group was preparing to go to Tokyo to meet with an influential Japanese production corporation. In the late 1980s, he turned his attention to the culture of techno, house music, and the club movement. In the early 1990s, Guryanov helped organize the first Russian raves: "Gagarin Party" at the Exhibition of Achievements of National Economy, VDNKh and "Mobile Party" at the Krylatskoye stadium in Moscow. He designed the poster for "Mobile Party".


Painting

In 1979, Guryanov met artist
Timur Novikov Timur Petrovich Novikov (September 24, 1958 – May 23, 2002) was a Russian visual artist, designer, art theorist, philosopher, and musician. He is considered one of the most influential proponents of Nonconformist Art before and after the dis ...
. In 1982, he became one of the first members of the New Artists group. Guryanov took part in the action "Zero Object" () with Novikov. In 1985, Guryanov and Tsoi, together with the New Artists, became the artists of the Leningrad Rock Club. In 1986, Guryanov, Novikov, and Afrika (artist), Sergey "Afrika" Bugaev founded the Club of Friends of Vladimir Mayakovsky, V V Mayakovsky (). In 1989, Novikov founded the New Academy of Fine Arts, and Guryanov became one of its members. Guryanov, along with fellow Neo-Academicians, received the title of Professor of the Academy. In July 1990, Guryanov took part in the First Exhibition on Palace Bridge, organized by the artist Ivan Movsesyan. Guryanov made a painting specifically for the exhibition of two phalluses in blue and red on white canvas, which, according to Hannelore Fobo, "broke a double taboo: as a symbol of same-sex love and of Russia as an independent state, which happened only a year later." In 1990, he took part in the project "Youth and Beauty in Art" (conference and exhibition), held by Timur Novikov and Dunya Smirnova at the Leningrad House of Scientists. In 1991, he participated in the exhibition "Academism and Neo-Academism" in the Marble Palace (Museum of V. I. Lenin), alongside artists such as Novikov, Denis Egelsky, and the young couturier Konstantin Goncharov, who created the "Strict Youth" () fashion house. Goncharov had made outfits for Guryanov and the other members of Kino. On June 21–22, 1991, Guryanov participated in the Second Exhibition on Palace Bridge, exhibiting a monumental painted panel "The Fighters" (). In 1992, he won the television competition "New Name of Russia and the Commonwealth Countries" (). In July 1992, he took part in the Third Exhibition on Palace Bridge, called "Extravaganza and Allegory of Leonardo", and in the exhibition "Secret Cult" in the Marble Palace, which also featured works by Wilhelm von Gloeden and French artists Pierre et Gilles, Pierre and Gilles. In 1993, Guryanov's first personal exhibition opened at the Russian Museum, State Russian Museum in St. Petersburg. In 1994, he participated in the exhibition "Renaissance and Resistance" at the State Russian Museum. An exhibition of Guryanov's work titled "Willpower" () ran at the Regina Gallery, Moscow from 1 November to 30 November 1994. In September 1995, Guryanov took part in the exhibition "On Beauty" at the Regina Gallery, Moscow, curated by Dan Cameron. In 1997, Guryanov took part in the exhibition "Kabinet" at the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam. In 1998, Guryanov's painting "Rowers" () was selected as a poster for the Gay Games#Gay Games V: Amsterdam 1998, Amsterdam Gay Games. In 1999, he became part of the New Serious movement, organized by Timur Novikov. In 2001, 2003, and 2004, solo exhibitions of Guryanov's works were held in the St. Petersburg gallery D-137. The gallery also repeatedly presented the artist's works as part of the Art Moscow project. In 2004, an exhibition of Guryanov's work took place in the Parisian gallery Orel Art. From November 2011 to January 2012, Guryanov's works were shown in the exhibition "New Academy. St. Petersburg" at the Ekaterina Cultural Foundation in Moscow. The exhibit was curated by Arkady Ippolitov and Alexandra Khartonova. Guryanov was most known for his images of athletes, sailors, and pilots. According to Maria Engström, these works follow in tradition of Andy Warhol, Andy Warhol's pop art as well as the Socialist realism, Socialist realist works of Alexander Nikolayevich Samokhvalov, Aleksandr Samokhvalov, Aleksandr Deyneka, and Ivan Shagin. Other references in Guryanov's work include the photographs of Alexander Rodchenko and films such as ''A Severe Young Man'', ''Querelle'', and ''Death in Venice (film), Death in Venice''. Many of these works also featured an element of self-portraiture. According to the art critic Ekaterina Andreeva, "In Neo-Academism [...], Guryanov’s rôle was particularly important, because he was the first to approach the taboo of totalitarian iconography [...] and he did so without the mask of irony that characterized Sots Art and Conceptualism." In an analytical review of the Russian contemporary art market in 2016, Guryanov was recognized as the most expensive artist in Russia for the last 10 years among those who reached their career peak after 1991 and exhibited at auctions in the last decade. Guryanov's 1990 work ''Self-Portrait'' was sold at the Sotheby's Contemporary East auction in June 2016 for 143,000 Pound sterling, GBP.


Film and television

Guryanov appeared as himself in Kino's music videos and in the cult films such as ''Ya-Hha'' (), ''End Of Holiday'' (), ''Rok'' (), and Assa (film), ''Assa''. According to the director Rashid Nugmanov, Guryanov was considered for a role in ''The Needle (1988 film), The Needle'', but Guryanov turned it down. In 1989, Guryanov helped found Pirate Television () alongside Yuris Lesnik, Vladislav Mamyshev-Monroe, and Timur Novikov. Guryanov led the Pirate TV sports program, "Spartacus". Guryanov portrayed Vladimir Mayakovsky, Mayakovsky in the 1998 film ''The Love Story of Marilyn Monroe and Vladimir Mayakovsky'' by the New Academy artist Olga Tobreluts. In 2010, Guryanov appeared in the film ''The Needle Remix'' () as a DJ.


Illness and death

In his final years, Guryanov became seriously ill. He was diagnosed with hepatitis C, as well as complications with cancer in his liver and pancreas. On June 21, 2013, Guryanov was discharged from Botkin Hospital. In his last month, he underwent chemotherapy in Germany and remained home in critical condition. He died at the age of 52 on July 20, 2013, in St. Petersburg. The funeral service took place on July 25 at the St. Nicholas Naval Cathedral in St. Petersburg. Guryanov was buried at the Smolensky Cemetery, Smolensk Cemetery.


Memorial

On February 27, 2014, Guryanov's birthday, the first exhibition dedicated to the artist and musician was opened in the Pushinskaya 10 Arts Center at the Museum of the New Academy of Fine Arts, with the support of the gallery D137. The exhibition, titled "My artwork - Me myself" (), featured works by friends and contemporaries such as
Timur Novikov Timur Petrovich Novikov (September 24, 1958 – May 23, 2002) was a Russian visual artist, designer, art theorist, philosopher, and musician. He is considered one of the most influential proponents of Nonconformist Art before and after the dis ...
,
Viktor Tsoi Viktor Robertovich Tsoi (, ; 21 June 1962 – 15 August 1990) was a Russian singer-songwriter and actor who co-founded Kino, one of the most popular and influential bands in the history of Russian music. Born and raised in Leningrad (mode ...
, Evgenij Kozlov, Evgeny Kozlov, Vladislav Mamyshev-Monroe, Denis Egelsky, Edige Niyazov, Edyge Niyazov, Metsur Volde, and Andrey Khlobystin. It was curated by Andrey Khlobystin. A catalog dedicated to Guryanov was prepared for the opening of the exhibition. In August 2017, the AST publishing house (Moscow) published the book “Georgy Guryanov: I Am Art,” written by Metsur Volde.


Works in collections


References


External links


Georgy Guryanov
on Discogs
Georgy Guryanov
on Russian Art Archive Network
Georgy Guryanov
on Artnet * {{DEFAULTSORT:Guryanov, Georgy 1961 births 2013 deaths Painters from Saint Petersburg Russian drummers Russian contemporary artists Kino (band) members Russian rock musicians Deaths from pancreatic cancer Deaths from liver cancer Deaths from hepatitis