Nikolai Dronnikov
Chronicler of Russian emigration
“Dronnikov is the most Russian of French artists and the most French of Russian ones, and this gives his work a unique quality that in the future both his homelands (and other countries) will be able to recognize and claim as their own...”
— Léon Robel, French poet and translatorAbout the Artist
Nikolai Yegorovich Dronnikov (1930–2025) was a Russian painter, graphic artist, sculptor, and publisher, known as a “chronicler of the Russian émigré community.” He was born on August 2, 1930, in the Tula region of Russia. He graduated from the Moscow Art School in memory of 1905 in 1957, and later from the Moscow State Art Institute named after V. I. Surikov in 1963. In 1968, during his stay in France, he met Marc Chagall, which influenced his decision to leave the USSR. In 1972, Dronnikov moved to Paris and became a “non-returnee.”
In Paris, the artist created an extensive portrait gallery, featuring prominent figures such as Alexander Solzhenitsyn, Joseph Brodsky, Vladimir Vysotsky, Andrei Tarkovsky, Sviatoslav Richter, and many others. His works stood out for their depth and expressiveness, capturing the character and inner world of his subjects.
Dronnikov was also a master of independent book publishing. He produced unique books and postcards in editions of no more than 25 copies using a home printing press. Among his publications were poems and diary excerpts of his close friend Gennady Aygi, as well as collections of poems by Nina Goncharova and Mikhail Larionov.
Nikolai Dronnikov passed away on January 26, 2025, at the age of 94 in Paris.
