Ivan Sergeevich Kuskov is a book graphic artist. Illustrations by Kuskov for "The Three Musketeers" Photos by the artist Ivan Kuskov all there is

It was either 87 or 88. I was introduced to Sergei Kuskov, we drank somewhere, and our companion took it into his head to drag me to the apartment of his artist father. Having stocked up with wine, we went into the entrance of an old beautiful house in Obydenskoye. The owner, who opened the door with the dignity of a lion and the gallantry of a gentleman, extended his hand to me, introducing himself: "Ivan Kuskov."
But I already stared at the drawings hung everywhere, tightly connected in my memory with a bunch of childhood books: Till, Don Quixote, Ivanhoe, Mine Reed, Cooper ... But most importantly - Three Musketeers!!! Probably half of the pleasure from these books was brought by pictures - they could be examined for a long time and in detail.
The owner really turned out to be the author of all these illustrations and I looked at him with wide eyes. "Three Musketeers" was the first book I read in the full sense on my own: barely having learned to read, I stole a thick red volume with mesmerizing pictures from an "adult" shelf. I remember that in my own way I transformed the incomprehensible names of the heroes, and when I later happened to hear about D "Artanyan and Aramis, I did not immediately realize that these were exactly the people with whom I was already familiar in early childhood ...

The owner's only room was as remarkable as himself.
Empty bottles were found everywhere. But storage of empty glass containers is the most important feature of the owner's personality. For example, in Itskovich's famous apartment on Kalashny, a corner of a large, half-empty room, which served as a living room, was allocated for this. The emptied bottles were installed one to one, starting from the corner, and over time they evenly filled the volume of the hall, forming on the wooden floor a map of a certain fluctuating outlines of the continent.
Kuskov's bottles were not a container and not a material for creating new forms. These were exactly the bottles and each found its place. Bastards from cognac sprouted in small shoots among other unthinkable half-broken souvenirs on a chest of drawers topped with an antique lamp with a homemade lampshade. Impressive "fire extinguishers" from port wine turned into dusty bottles of Burgundy drunk in the darkness of a tavern and wrapped in draperies of old fabrics weaved into still lifes with a broken casket and a carelessly thrown dagger. In addition to them, there were some decanters and wine glasses - either antique-crystal, not that - bought yesterday in a souvenir shop. The walls and ceiling were painted with images barely discernible in the twilight. The interior was filled with all kinds of hats, fake swords, old mirrors, horns, shells, and a host of other obscure objects.
Both this apartment and the knightly manners of the owner were very attractive. But from the whole conversation, I only remember the discussion of the question, should I still go for wine or - it's time to go home ...

At the time of the visit, a guest was present in the apartment - a friend, as the owner introduced him, having found it difficult, however, to name his name. This was a drunk philosopher, typical of those old Moscow lanes, who had almost lost the gift of speech by that time, but held on with dignity and meaning.

I think I visited Kuskov Sr. once more. And since then we have sometimes crossed paths with his son at some opening days. Sergei Kuskov was a highly respected art critic in certain circles. He worked, it seems, at the Tretyakov Gallery, he had colossal erudition, but he was more engaged in contemporary art: he wrote, curated exhibitions. In the 90s, he became interested in the art projects of the NBP - also "the one" where the spirit of Kuryokhin, Dugin and Letov soared. We drank a couple of times somewhere. After drinking, he at first excitedly embarked on the presentation of some ideas that were fascinating with their controversy. Somehow, falling into a rage, he tried to grab my throat ... I tried to understand him, he seemed to see something important, but his speech was too indistinct, his diction worsened with every glass, and I was often completely busy. other thoughts. Sergei left in me a feeling of some kind of childish insecurity. He once said that his father was seriously ill. And over time, he completely disappeared from sight.
The other day I learned about the fate of both Kuskovs from the diary of one artist:

"The life of the artist Ivan Kuskov ended tragically. During the" perestroika ", when there was no alcohol on sale, he, with some former sea captain (I suspect it was a demon in the guise of a captain) bought and drank alcohol. For nine years, until his death, the blind Ivan Kuskov was bedridden.Art critic Sergei Kuskov was forced to exchange an apartment on the "golden kilometer" of Ostozhenka for Ryazansky Prospect.After the death of his father, he ended up in the Krasnodar Territory and died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 53. "

All that could be found biographical about Kuskov Sr. is a tiny note on the website of the Museum of the Moscow Art School, where, it turns out, his works are stored.
And finally, collected in the first_books LJ community.

About Sergey managed to find only a few mentions in blogs and fragments of his articles:
And a sample of his "corporate" style:
"So, it is no coincidence that on a black background, as in the heavens of night, a whole constellation of such small but cosmic sign-forms, sign-bodies arises. These are often ancient solar or astral signs, more often - their modern author transformations and variations that do not break with the spell This is how it should happen: after all, the Archetype lives only by reincarnating and altering itself every time anew, always flickering in different ways on the verge of recognizable-unrecognizability. "(from an article about a ceramist artist)

A friend of the owner among his works

Sergei Kuskov and Alexander Dugin at Petliura's squat present a performance with some defiant fire-worshiping-fascist idea. I do not remember the idea, I only remember that the burners of gas pipes were blazing, and in the fire they were burned like these hanging "living corpses".

BE CURSED VODKA.

Favorite books of childhood ... They are remembered all my life, they are the basis of our intellectual baggage. I was lucky to have a lot of books. And the most beloved ones are decorated with wonderful illustrations. One of the best illustrators, thanks to whom I adore book graphics - Ivan Sergeevich Kuskov. An artist who was rightly called the "king of illustrations." Below I will cite an excerpt from an article by art critic Sergei Kuskov, the artist's son. The article is great.

“Born into the family of a pediatrician in Moscow, in Obydensky lane near Ostozhenka. “Born, live, die all in the same old house” - this quote from Saint Beva, later written by Kuskov on the door of his room, actually became the motto of the artist, who actually lived in this house, in his sixteen-meter room in a communal apartment all his life.

After the fourth grade of a comprehensive school, he entered the first grade of the Moscow Art School, which had just opened in 1939. From 1941 to 1943 he was evacuated to Bashkiria with this school.

He graduated from high school in 1946. In 1947 he entered the Surikov Institute and graduated in 1952. Since then he has worked as an illustrator for various publishing houses.

The gift of an illustrator manifested itself in I.S. Kuskovo very early. The museum collection contains works made by him at the age of nine. These compositions on historical themes amaze with the ability to compose and knowledge of the historical era. "

Ivan Sergeevich is the author of illustrations for books that everyone read - “The Three Musketeers”, “Forty-five”, “Till Ulenspiegel”, “Don Quixote”, “The Mines of King Solomon”, ... He was admired by his colleagues and simply admirers, calling him “the second Durer ”,“ The king of illustrations ”.
The son of Ivan Sergeevich is art critic Sergei Kuskov.

fantlab.ru/art1032

The most vivid memories, as you know, are from childhood. The most delicious ice cream, the most interesting films, funny ski walks, trips to the ice rink, and the most terrible stories told to each other before going to bed, all this seems to have happened only then. And of course the greedy "swallowing" of books, especially adventure books.

Looking through these editions now, I remember that light and carefree time. How they imagined themselves to be the heroes of the plots, how they tried to read more quickly to the picture. Then again and again. And what a pity that the last page was approaching.

I don't know how anyone has it, but my favorite book was The Three Musketeers with illustrations by Ivan Kuskov. And although it is believed that the artist Maurice Lelloir best conveyed the images of the heroes of Dumas' novel, the “pictures” from the book of my childhood are dear to my heart.

Book graphics are complicated by the fact that the illustrator, as a co-author of the publication, should in no way destroy those images that have already arisen when reading the story. On the contrary, its task is to combine the vision of the writer, the illustrator and the vision of the reader.

Ivan Kuskov (1927-1997) - Moscow graphic artist. During his life he designed over a hundred books. The most famous of them are Charles Dickens, Charles Coster, Fenimore Cooper, Mine Reed, Jonathan Swift, Miguel Cervantes, Walter Scott and Alexandre Dumas. His favorite technique is ink and pen.

The artist accurately portrayed the characters of Dumas, the atmosphere and the romantic spirit of that era. The revived heroes of his illustrations seem to have come out of the engravings of the 17th century, in which the action took place. Their features, details of the costume, weapons, each feather on the hat are carefully traced. All these nuances determined a kind of "dress code" of a nobleman, military man or official of that time. The style of Kuskov's works corresponds to the most descriptive manner of the novel, reflects the desire of Dumas to give an exhaustive story about the appearance, habits, manner of dress in order to more accurately reveal the images of his characters.