Savchenko, Yuriy

Yuriy Savchenko masterfully blends an impressionistic style of painting with abstract expressionism. The heavy layers of paint, although abstract in their application, come together to create richly colored landscapes and fields of flowers. An artist with a particularly dynamic touch, Savchenko is able to transform nature into something magical and fantastic, staging on his canvases an encounter between the painterly legacies of Monet and Jasper Johns with the traditions of Ukrainian decorative arts.

Many of Savchenko’s landscapes depict village scenes that are dedicated to Slobozhanshchyna, the northeastern part of Ukraine that is the artist’s native region. The richly colored flowers, another favorite subject of the artist, also draw their inspiration from Savchenko’s homeland. 

Born in Sloviansk, Ukraine in 1935, Savchenko graduated from the Kharkiv Institute of Art and Design and received his professional training at the Theatre and Decorative Arts Department of the Institute, where he worked with the acclaimed professors Shyhymaha and Stakhanov. His works are held in many permanent collections internationally. Savchenko resides and works in Sloviansk, Ukraine.