Article "Man as the Meaning of Art. Artist Viktor Arseni" From the literary and social journal "Voice of the Epoch," Issue 1, 2018.:
"For me, MAN is not a staffage figure among skyscrapers or a striking splash of color on green grass. For me, MAN is the CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE! MAN is the meaning and purpose of my art!
It is very difficult to convey on canvas the materiality of precious metals, luxurious fabrics, the smooth surface of water, and the delicacy of a woman's skin, but that's not what I pray for; it's simply a matter of technique!
There are heights that cannot be reached even by slave labor—the ability to deeply feel and understand human souls and know how to subtly and precisely express these feelings on canvas—and that's what I pray for!"—this is how artist Viktor Fedorovich Arseni describes his work.
Viktor was born in 1969 in Chisinau. He graduated from the A. Shchusev Art School and the I. Repin Art and Pedagogical College.
After graduating from art school, he was invited to work at the A. Pushkin State Art Museum of Moldova. From 1991, Victor worked as an art restorer at the State Art Museum of Moldova.
In 1993, he was one of the founders of a permanent exhibition and sale of paintings in the center of Chisinau, often called the "Chisinau Arbat."
During his studies, thanks to the influence of N.A. Vasilyeva, a teacher at the Shchusev School, Victor Fedorovich developed a special love for 19th-century Russian painters, who became his role models.
After serving in the army, Arseni returned to his hometown and devoted himself to artistic creation. His genres are quite diverse – illustrations, graphics, landscapes, multi-figure compositions, portraits…
Portraits, painted with photographic precision, occupy, perhaps, the most important place in Viktor Fedorovich's work. "As a portraitist, I subordinate everything in the painting to the image I'm painting! Everything must work – clothing, background, colors, techniques, spots, composition – everything for the sake of looking deeper and discovering more secrets! If something is even simply neutral, I remove it without mercy," the artist says.
He is no less meticulous about his other works, especially his genre paintings. "After finishing each painting, I always have a burning feeling – was it a success, or not!" Arseni admits. "And I only calm down when I tell myself that 'LET IT BE THIS WAY FOR NOW,' like a sketch for a future painting. Only then does the PAINTING, having taken from me, as it were, a promise to continue, release its tight grip on my throat and soul!
Maybe that's why I paint from my own drawings and illustrations—I fulfill the promises I made to my drawings—fragments of my soul and heart!
And it's amazing how, by giving away a piece of my soul, the SOUL becomes even larger and purer! Lord!!! Great is Your power!"
Religious and historical themes noticeably dominate Viktor Fyodorovich's work. "The Second Appearance of Jesus Christ" , "Our Daily Bread." "Easter or the Angel "...