Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Klykov (russian: Вячесла́в Миха́йлович Клы́ков; 19 October 1939 — 2 June 2006) was a Russian sculptor who specialized in public monuments to key figures of national history and culture. He was born into a peasant family near

Kursk Kursk ( rus, Курск, p=ˈkursk) is a city and the administrative center of Kursk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Kur, Tuskar, and Seym rivers. The area around Kursk was the site of a turning point in the Soviet–German stru ...

and studied in the Surikov Art Institute in Moscow, matriculating in 1964. Klykov's bronze statues did not conform to the precepts of

Socialist Realism Socialist realism is a style of idealized realistic art that was developed in the Soviet Union and was the official style in that country between 1932 and 1988, as well as in other socialist countries after World War II. Socialist realism is c ...

. His playful sculptural decor for the Central Musical Theatre for Children (1979) made him famous. In the late 1980s Klykov turned to the

Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...

for inspiration and support. His public statue of

Sergius of Radonezh Sergius of Radonezh (russian: Се́ргий Ра́донежский, ''Sergii Radonezhsky''; 14 May 1314 – 25 September 1392), also known as Sergiy Radonezhsky, Serge of Radonezh and Sergius of Moscow, was a spiritual leader and monastic re ...

Radonezh Radonezh (russian: Радонеж), formerly known as ''Gorodok'' () is a historic village in Moscow Oblast, Russia, located about from Sergiyev Posad. The old town of Radonezh is known to have existed since the first half of the 14th century, wh ...

(1987) was the first memorial installed in the Soviet Union without permission from the authorities. Klykov's other high-profile commissions include the memorial and church on the Field of Prokhorovka (1995), the public statues of Sts.

Cyril and Methodius Cyril (born Constantine, 826–869) and Methodius (815–885) were two brothers and Byzantine Christian theologians and missionaries. For their work evangelizing the Slavs, they are known as the "Apostles to the Slavs". They are credited wit ...

Slavyanskaya Square Slavyanskaya Square () is a square in central Moscow, also known in 1924-1991 as northern side of Nogina Square (Площадь Ногина); the southern side of former Nogina Square is now called Varvarka Gates Square (Площадь Варв ...

(1991) and

Marshal Zhukov Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov ( rus, Георгий Константинович Жуков, p=ɡʲɪˈorɡʲɪj kənstɐnʲˈtʲinəvʲɪtɕ ˈʐukəf, a=Ru-Георгий_Константинович_Жуков.ogg; 1 December 1896 – ...

on Manege Square (1995). He was also responsible for the statue of St. Vladimir in Kherson (1993) and several monuments to Nicholas II, including the first one erected in Russia, in 1996, which was blown up by anti-monarchists on several occasions. In the 1990s, Klykov created and ran the International Fund of Slavonic Literature and Culture, a nationalist organization with close connections to the ''

Pamyat The Pamyat Society (russian: Общество «Память», russian: Obshchestvo «Pamyat», ; English language, English translation: "''Memory''" Society), officially National Patriotic Front "Memory" (NPF "Memory"; russian: Национал� ...

'', and (later) '' Rodina''. In July 1991, Klykov signed the open letter

A Word to the People "A Word to the People" (Russian: «Слово к народу») was an open letter signed by twelve Soviet public figures. The declaration was published in '' Sovetskaya Rossiya'' (a newspaper that expressed anti-perestroika views) on 23 July 199 ...

, an anti-Perestroika publication. In 1990s, Klykov was close to the

CPRF , anthem = , seats1_title = Seats in the State Duma , seats1 = , seats2_title = Seats in the Federation Council , seats2 = , seats3_title = Governors , seats3 = , seats4_title ...

; on 21 November 2005, he was elected the chairman of the re-founded

Union of the Russian People The Union of the Russian People (URP) (russian: Союз русского народа, translit=Soyuz russkogo naroda; СРН/SRN) is a loyalist far-right nationalist political party, the most important among Black-Hundredist monarchist politic ...

. In 2005, he signed the Letter of 5000, a controversial appeal to the Prosecutor General to review all Jewish organizations in Russia for extremism. In 2005, a reports circulated that Klykov had unveiled a statue in the village of Kholki that depicted Sviatoslav I of Kiev trampling a

Khazar The Khazars ; he, כּוּזָרִים, Kūzārīm; la, Gazari, or ; zh, 突厥曷薩 ; 突厥可薩 ''Tūjué Kěsà'', () were a semi-nomadic Turkic people that in the late 6th-century CE established a major commercial empire coverin ...

warrior with a prominently displayed Star of David. The Press Center of the

Belgorod Belgorod ( rus, Белгород, p=ˈbʲeɫɡərət) is a city and the administrative center of Belgorod Oblast, Russia, located on the Seversky Donets River north of the border with Ukraine. Population: Demographics The population of B ...

Regional Administration issued a response stating that while plans for a monument were underway, none had yet been erected in the region thus far, and that the design of the monument would show "respect towards representatives of all nationalities and religions." The statue was eventually unveiled and the response by the Press Center has been confirmed. The statue is in the village of Kholki, near Belgorod.

References

External links

Article in the online Krugosvet encyclopaedia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Klykov, Vyacheslav 1939 births 2006 deaths People from Sovetsky District, Kursk Oblast Members of the Union of the Russian People Slavophiles 21st-century Russian sculptors 20th-century Russian sculptors 20th-century Russian male artists Russian male sculptors Russian monarchists Russian nationalists 21st-century Russian male artists

See also

References

External links