OLEG NEDOSHYTKO Sold at Auction Prices

b. 1950 -

“To create a genuine work of art, professional skills and technical knowledge are not enough, no matter how superb they might be. The work has to become an embodiment of condensed emotion and powerful spiritual energy, an imprint of the artist’s soul. The more of yourself you invest into your work, the bigger the return.”


Drawing is my life!
At twenty one, Oleg Nedoshytko was listed in reserve after serving his mandatory military term as a nurse, and his choice of a career seemed predetermined: with his experience, the doors of a highly prestigious Medical School were open for him. In the meantime, he looked for a summer job in his native city of Odessa, a large port city on the Black Sea in southern Ukraine. He found it in a commercial advertising studio. That day changed his life. Working with paint opened a new world for him. From that point on, his suddenly discovered passion for art took care of his future.
In the following months, Oleg became a fixture in local museums, copying nineteenth century masterpieces and drawing marble statues of ancient Greek gods. In 1972, he was admitted to the department of visual arts of South Ukrainian National University of Education. He graduated with a bachelor degree in Fine Arts five years later, having come a long way from a novice to a fully qualified professional.
That same year, Oleg was invited to return to his alma mater in Odessa, this time in a teaching capacity. He provided instruction in classical observation and figure drawing, painting and composition for nearly forty years. From 2007 to 2015, he held a professorial position with the Chair of Visual Arts in his department, and in 2011 and 2012 , served as its Dean. His students are now working around the world, and his theoretic works and instructional books have been printed in professional magazines in Ukraine, Europe and the USA.
Throughout these years, art was the focus of his life and work. Oleg Nedoshytko’s works can be seen in many museums and private collections around the world. Since 1986, Oleg has been an active member of the Ukrainian National Artists’ Union. In 2000, he joined “European Artists eV”, a professional association based in Germany. His unique artistic language is based in the best of South European traditions of fine art. It contains purity and vibrancy of a colour scheme reminiscent of French Impressionists. His vision is shaped by the vast sunny skies over the warm sea and dazzling colours of Odessa markets. It is also deeply influenced rich folk traditions of his multi-ethnic and multi-confessional land (his wife Zhanna is of a Muslim Tatar background).
Yet, Nedoshytko’s paintings are never a direct quotation or narrative told from observation. He talks to his international audiences through a unique system of poetic symbols and abstract notions that invite viewers to participate in the creative process.
In 2015, Oleg Nedoshytko celebrated his 65th jubilee by holding a personal exhibition in Odessa Museum of Western and Eastern Art, where security veterans still remember him as a boy with attentive eyes, graphite pencil in hand. He told journalists he had made a full circle, coming back to celebrate his life achievements in the very place where he started. When asked about the secret behind his prolific work and its never-fading public appeal, the artist said, “To create a genuine work of art, professional skills and technical knowledge are not enough, no matter how superb they might be. The work has to become an embodiment of condensed emotion and powerful spiritual energy, an imprint of the artist’s soul. The more of yourself you invest into your work, the bigger the return.”
Honours:

Medal of Ukrainian Christian Orthodox Patriarchy “For Outstanding Volunteer Work and Love for Ukraine” for icon and altar painting in Odessa Church of Holy Protection
Honorary Mention for Outstanding Contribution to Fine Art in Ukraine by National Artists Union of Ukraine Honorary Mention by the Governor of Odessa Province
Honorary Mention by Odessa City Council for Outstanding Achievements in Fine Art
Best painting award by the Board of Kiev Trienalle, Ukraine
Best painting award, Ivshitar Trienalle, Turkey
Best painting award, “High Castle” Bienalle, Lviv, Ukraine
Best Visual Art Teacher and Instructor award by Odessa Provincial Board of Post-secondary Education and Science
Honorary Mention for Outstanding Contribution to Youth Education in Arts and Culture, Odessa Governor General Award
Best Art Professor By Students Vote Award, South Ukrainian University of Education