About
Masha Molodykh belongs to generation of artists whose career started in the 1990's when young people in Russia turned to new tendencies in art, overthrowing the academic canons. Masha on the contrary stayed loyal to the classical traditions developing the realistic art of the Petersburg Academy.

The artist was born in St.Petersburg. She was brought up in the family of well-known painters: her grandfather Yuri Skorikov, an Honorary artist of Russia, was a professor of painting at the Academy of Arts, parents Elizaveta Skorikova and Stanislav Molodykh worked with a success in different genres.

Since her early years, Masha has demonstrated an outstanding talent for art. She graduated from the I. E. Repin Institute of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture (the Academy of Fine Arts) in 1998. Being as a student of prof. Oleg Eremeyev, rector of the Academy, she was a great sport and participated in the annual international exhibitions, became a member of the Artist's Union of Russia.

Later she traveled a lot to paint on plein air in different light conditions and worked out a series of Californian, French, Spanish and Dutch landscapes. Most vividly her art was displayed on the one-man shows in San Francisco (1998, 2000). Masha'a pictures were chosen for a number of exhibitions and auctions of modern Russian realistic art in Europe. They were recognized by a public and acquired by the state museums and private collectors in Russia and abroad.

The artist travels much in Russia, studying the variety of folk types and way of life in different parts of the country. She is interested in painting the countryside life, portraits of common people, collecting the material for the large program picture like her diploma work " Wedding in province"(175x250, 1998).

The artist enjoys the surrounding nature and always depicts its beauty. A man in her paintings is an integral part of nature and the background plays an important role in her portraits. They provoked a strong interest of art critics, who marked "a surprising purity and delicacy of coloring". The children's images look so natural and that charm of a cozy home emanates from them. Masha's paintings "Little Teacher", "Liza", "Girl with the Dog (On the Carpet)" display an innocent and happy world of a child in a subtle and sincere manner. Thus, the artist emphasizes the significance of heartfelt relations in a family.

Masha Molodykh continues the traditions of Russian realistic painting, enriching them with the almost Impressionists' manner and her own bright perception. Whatever she paints - complicated thematic pictures, landscape or still life - her works expose purity and sublimity of the Russian heart.
E.Baryshnikova