The manifestation of national identity in painting using the example of the works of Chelyabinsk artists

Works of art contribute to the manifestation of identity and serve as a means of forming this identity amongst those who appreciate such art. We are increasingly immersed in the values of the globalizing world, while the rejection of national identity can lead to the danger of losing patriotism. The article examines the manifestations of national and ethnic identities of artists in their paintings. By what means are they embodied in the works and broadcast to the audience? Traditionally, art criticism sees the manifestation of the national in painting only in the specifics of the color scheme. However, this is insufficient to analyse specific works. It is much more productive to use the traits of the national art school, such as the presence of common motifs, the stability of compositional schemes, the general nature of coloristic developments. Using the example of landscape genre paintings created by Chelyabinsk artists Artush Karapetyan, Viktor Skobelev, Vasily Solovyov and Timur Khuzhin, the study describes the main means of expressing identity through pictorial motifs characteristic of the national landscape, compositional solutions and color preferences. Furthermore, the study also examines the question of the possibilities of broadcasting identity by works of contemporary art (unrealistic). The conclusions are important when it comes to identifying the traits of national schools of painting and determining the directions of modern art research.