Studio of War Artists

(since 1965, the M. B. Grekov Order of the Red Star Studio of War Artists), a collective of Soviet artists in the armed forces. The Studio of War Artists was founded in 1934–35 and named in honor of the battle scene painter M. B. Grekov. In 1943 it was placed under the jurisdiction of the Main Political Directorate of the Soviet Army and Navy. Originally a studio for the training of amateur artists in the Red Army, it became an organization of professional artists in 1940. During the Great Patriotic War (1941–45) many of the artists went to the front, where they produced posters, leaflets, portraits of war heroes, and caricatures. The studio played an important role in the development of the panorama and diorama in the USSR.

Leading artists of the Studio of War Artists have included E. V. Vuchetich, A. A. Gorpenko, I. V. Evstigneev, N. N. Zhukov, P. A. Krivonogov, P. T. Mal’tsev, and M. I. Samsonov. The studio’s goals are the cultural and political education of servicemen and the portrayal of the heroic battle traditions and contemporary life of the Soviet Army.