During the period from the 1930s to the 1990s, Yuri Yurovsky began collecting drawings and paintings by his artist friends. Carefully, over several decades, he assembled a collection of museum-quality works.

Yuri Yurovsky – Artist and Art Collector (1913–2008)

Yuri Yurovsky was a distinguished Ukrainian artist and collector, born in Kyiv in 1913. He worked prolifically from the 1930s through the 1990s and belonged to the older generation of Kievan/Soviet artists of the twentieth century. Renowned as a landscape painter and an exceptional colorist, Yurovsky was also a master of still life. Many regarded him as one of the finest colorists of his time. For Yurovsky, nature—Mother Earth herself—was his true calling and enduring muse.

A significant milestone in his artistic development was his mentorship under Kazimir Malevich at the age of 18. Later in life, Yurovsky became a mentor and friend to artists such as Nikolai Glushchenko, Tatyana Yablonskaya, Semyon Guetsky, and Viktor Koshevoy. His oeuvre demonstrates a remarkable synthesis of classical training, avant-garde ideas, and postwar émigré expression, making his work both historically and artistically significant.

The well-known artist Tatiana Bruni, a close friend of Yurovsky, once said:

"Yuri amazed me with his exceptionally refined perception of the natural world. His autumns, his summers, his winters—each season—is infused with a sensitivity that reaches the depths of the soul and a profound understanding of nature. I love landscapes, and when I look at Yuri’s paintings, I feel revived. I see myself within the scene—I enter the painting, walking through it, dreaming, softly singing..."

Even during his student years at the Kyiv Art Institute, Yurovsky’s talent stood out. Under the guidance of Professor Rakitsky, he honed his craft and developed the technical mastery that would define his artistic legacy.

Yurovsky was not only an accomplished artist but also a devoted collector. Over the years, he gathered theatrical designs, particularly for ballet and opera. His collection reflects the virtuosity of a generation of artists who continued the traditions of Léon Bakst and Kazimir Malevich, bridging the classical and the modern in a way that remains timeless and vital.

Yurovsky was personally connected to Malevich and shared with him an innate sensitivity to color, form, and the rhythmic beauty of nature. A true poet of the landscape, he lived among the great painters of his era and was naturally drawn to music, which resonated deeply in his artistic soul.