International Exhibition “Wildart 2022”

February 15, 2022
Lea Finke

International animal exhibition
"WILDART 2022. THE MAGICAL WORLD OF WILDLIFE".
Ecological and Biological Centre "Krestovsky Island".
19 February 2022 - 17 April 2022
Novosibirsk - St. Petersburg

I am very pleased to announce that two of my paintings will be on display for 10 weeks in an international group exhibition in St. Petersburg. One of the paintings was created as part of the ABUN project #32 Eurasian Otters, the second was created especially for the exhibition.

"WildArt 2022" starts on 19 February at 15:00 in the biological environmental centre "Krestovsky Island" of the City Palace of Youth Art on Krestovsky Prospekt and will be on view until 17 April 2022.

This is what the curators of the exhibition write

Visitors will see a wonderful world of wildlife. The authors' works not only show artistic paintings of rare animals, birds and insects - we can see the stories of their lives, immerse ourselves in their environment, learn about their relationships.
Many of the characters in the stories depicted in the exhibition are threatened with extinction and are in the Red Book.
The exhibition aims to highlight the beauty of nature and remind us of the fragility and vulnerability of the world around us.
The paintings are in different techniques and styles, but each one highlights the uniqueness and originality of the animals depicted.

Eurasischer Otter | Lea Finke

The exhibition includes over one hundred and forty works by artists from Russia, the United Kingdom, Germany, the USA, Brazil, Ukraine, India and the Netherlands. A separate part of the exhibition is dedicated to the children's drawings of the participants in the "Otters of the World 2021" competition.
The memorial part of the exhibition is dedicated to the outstanding Russian artists and animal painters Vladimir Smirin (1931-1989) and Viktor Bakhtin (1951-2016).

Wladimir Smirin

For a quarter of a century, Vladimir Smirin worked on a grandiose project - the Atlas of the Land Animals of Europe and North Asia. He made sketches on expeditions, in zoos and scientific laboratories. The exhibition was prepared by the Wildlife Conservation Centre. We thank B.V.Smirin, the artist's son, for the opportunity to present these works.

B. V. Bachtin

B. V. Bakhtin is known as the illustrator of more than 70 books. One of the artist's main works was the "Red Book" of the Krasnoyarsk Region - the first regional edition in the USSR. For the 1982 Winter Games in the USSR, which took place in Krasnoyarsk, Bakhtin created the mascot "Kesha the Sable", which became no less popular than the 1980 Olympic Bear.

The exhibition takes place in the framework of the project "Don't scream - VYDRY! Red Book of Russia" with the support and assistance of:


  • Presidential Fund for Cultural Initiatives
  • Initiative groups "Zoosphere" (Novosibirsk) and "Clean Water Ring" (St. Petersburg),
  • Foundation for the Development of Forest and Park Areas of Novosibirsk "Zapovedniy Les",
  • Charitable Foundation Centre for Wildlife Conservation (Moscow),
  • The Krasnoyarsk Viktor Bakhtin Centre for Animalistic Studies,
  • The Three Spheres Union of Creative Leaders (Krasnoyarsk),
  • The Foundation for the Preservation of Siberia and the Far East Charity Foundation (Krasnoyarsk),
  • The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN, Great Britain)
  • ABUN Creative Association of Artists (Brazil).
  • Office of the Mayor of the City of Novosibirsk for Culture
  • Municipal Directorate for Creative Programmes of the Mayor's Office of the City of Novosibirsk
  • The Environmental Protection Committee of the City of Novosibirsk
  • The Public Relations Department of the Novosibirsk Mayor's Office
  • Sphere Group (Novosibirsk)

We invite all who are not indifferent to the fate of our smaller brothers, who understand that the world is a vast house inhabited by a great number of living beings, and that we, the human beings, have the honourable right to maintain peace and tranquillity in this house.

I feel very honoured that my two paintings have found a place in this exhibition

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About the Author Lea Finke

Lea Finke is an artist with all her soul. In her blog, she talks about inspiration, passion, and encounters with art.

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