ALEXANDER IVAKHNENKO

Alexander Ivakhnenko was
graduated with a degree in book design from
the Kyiv Institute of Art, after which he
went on to perfect his skills at an art studio
associated with the USSR Academy of Arts
in Kyiv. A resident of Kyiv, his interests
include book-plating and painting.
Ivakhnenko turned to the traditions
of Ukrainian folk artists in an attempt to
more accurately convey in his illustrations
the stylistic distinctiveness of the
outstanding 19-th century Ukrainian poet
Taras Shevchenko.
The etchings Ivakhnenko completed
for a collection of the poet's lyrics on
nature, "Cherry Orchard by the House,"
stand out for their readily appreciated form
and content, symbolism in the treatment of
space, decorativeness, generalized
presentation of characters, and clear and
precise compositions.
In illustrating Shevchenko's elegies
and eclogues, Ivakhnenko is a subtle lyric
poet while in doing his tragic poems he
sharply alters his artistic intonation to
convey the poet's spirit of struggle for the
freedom and equality of the Ukrainian
people.