Freedom of the image and the boundaries of the book: Evgeny Bortnikov as an illustrator
The article is devoted to easel illustrative sheets and book graphics by Evgeny A. Bortnikov (1952-2013), the leading Tagil artist of 1980-2000. The analysis of his series of illustrations for a number of famous literary works, as well as the design of books in collaboration with the Middle Ural and South Ural book publishing houses, publishing houses of Moscow is carried out. The article analyzes the author's artistic style, shows the difference between the style of working on sheets based on literary works and the design of books commissioned by publishers. It is emphasized that for all the difference between the two identified areas of his work, they are brought together by a masterful technique, the specifics of the graphic language and the personality of the artist, which is tangible in each work, putting the aesthetic and semantic side of the image at the forefront.