There is a lively, elegant quality to the paintings created by Russian native and Connecticut resident Zufar Bikbov, whose expressive landscapes combine a Russian and Soviet-era Impressionist style with a high-key color palette influenced by his time in the US. Characteristic of his work is a sense of quiet reverie; each painting is a profound response to the lyrical charm of the landscape. Zufar’s art – in style and inspiration – is always an exploration.
Zufar’s interest in painting came early in life from the influence of his father, a well-respected specialist in engineering. His father’s dream to become an artist could not be realized in post WWII Soviet Union during Stalin’s regime. Although his father was accepted to Nicolai Fechin's Art school in Kazan (Russia), he had to switch to the school of Engineering and Architecture. “My dad never pushed me into an art career”, recalls Zufar, “however, albums of my father’s watercolors and a library of Russian Fine Art at our home, along with my father’s paints and brushes – this environment became fertile soil for artistic talent to grow."
Zufar began drawing and painting classes at age nine. He was eleven when he painted his first plein air pieces, depicting nearby village cottages and a horse resting next to a carriage delivering pies to the local market. He found this kind of painting more immediate than painting a still-life or a model in the studio. He fell in love with landscape painting and started exploring the language of direct expression— of what was just in front of him.
When the time came to choose a college and profession, his need to help people led Zufar to a medical career. During his study in medical school, residency, and finally a move to the United States, art was never left behind and continued to be an essential part of his life. Zufar was honored to participate in the exhibit “Doctors Paint” in the State Museum of Fine Arts in Kazan and at Yale Medical School.
Zufar’s landscape style leans towards Russian and Soviet era Impressionism. For him art is a continuous experimentation and growth area. More than a decade of traveling and painting in the US has brought his painting palette to a higher key and forged friendships all over the country.
In 2012, he entered the world of competitive plein air painting in the United States, winning numerous awards in the process. Among those, Zufar treasures most the Artist Choice Award at Plein Air Easton (Maryland), a "Medal of Honor and Merit" from Kent Art Association (the first art organization in the US he joined), the Hudson Valley Art Association Gold Medal, and The Irvine Museum Award, received during the Laguna Plein Air national competition (Laguna Beach, California).
A current faculty member at Lyme Academy of Fine Arts, Zufar Bikbov is also an elected member of the Guild of Boston Artists, the Kent Art Association, the Lyme Art Association, and a signature member of Plein Air Painters of America.