We are Direct Importers of Russian Art from the Soviet Era offering the best of Soviet Realism, Impressionism and Contemporary Art dating from 1898.

Nicolai I. Tulupov

Nicolai I. Tulupov was born in a small village in the Central Black Earth region of Russia in 1923. His lifelong love was the study of Russian Art. When he was a teenager he was run over by a farm wagon and ultimately lost a leg. He always credited the accident with saving his life because it kept him out of the war.

Nicolai I. Tupulov studied art at the Art College in Penza, one of the best known of the provincial schools, and one that encouraged individuality. His work is proof that he followed his own path. From early on he rejected the Socialist Realism, because of this he was pushed out and not even allowed into the Artist's Union until after the fall of Communism. One woman who was a model for the artist during her university years formed a bond with Nicolai I. Tupulov and took care of him during the last years of his life. Nicolai I. Tupulov left all of his works to her. She tells that she would often question him about his "dark" style of painting. He simply replied that someday she would understand. She is not sure that she does completely but she has worked tirelessly since his death in 1997 to make the world aware of his unique talent. In 2007 L. P. Cline had the great honor of meeting this special woman in her home and saw the beautiful collection of Nicolai I. Tupulov's paintings of Russian and Soviet Impressionist Art. She graciously allowed me to purchase several paintings during this visit. The balance of his works were donated to several museums.

Nicolai I. Tupulov never married because of a heart breaking loss of a girl to another man during his college years. He even did a self-portrait of himself secretly viewing the young couple on their wedding day.

Talking to someone who knew him intimately and looking through his works from the early 1940's until his death shows a most complex man and an artist of extraordinary talent and determination. Nicolai I. Tupulov's technique of the heavy brush stroke and the mixing of pure color gives the viewer a tangible contact and a tremendous and energetic emotion.

Please watch this artist page to view many of Nicolai I. Tupulov's works through the L. P. Cline Gallery.