Alexei Eriomin

Alexei Eriomin was a Soviet military officer and Hero of the Soviet Union. He was born on 3 June 1927 in Ilovaisk, Donetsk Province, Ukrainian SSR, USSR. He was the son of a miner. He joined the Red Army in 1945 and served in the Far East during World War II. He participated in the battles of Khalkhin Gol, Lake Khasan, and the Kuril Islands. He was wounded twice and received several medals and orders for his bravery and service. He was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union in 1948 for his role in the liberation of the Kuril Islands from the Japanese occupation. After the war, he enrolled in the Leningrad Higher Naval Engineering School, where he studied naval architecture and engineering. He graduated in 1953 and became a naval engineer. He worked in various shipyards and design bureaus, and was involved in the construction and modernization of many Soviet warships and submarines. He also continued his artistic career, which he started as a hobby during the war. He studied painting under the guidance of Alexander Sokolov, Nikolai Galakhov, Vladimir Seleznev, and other prominent Leningrad artists. He became a member of the Leningrad Union of Artists in 1960 and participated in many exhibitions and competitions. He specialized in realistic and socialist realist paintings, especially seascapes, portraits, and historical scenes. He painted many works depicting the life and achievements of the Soviet Navy, as well as the history and culture of his native region. He also wrote poems and essays about his war experiences and his artistic views. He died in 2005 in Saint Petersburg, Russian Federation, of a shrapnel wound he received during the siege of Leningrad. He was buried in the Serafimovskoye Cemetery. His paintings are now displayed in various museums and galleries, such as the Central Naval Museum, the State Russian Museum, the State Tretyakov Gallery, and the Feodosia Art Gallery. He is considered one of the most original and influential Russian realist painters and poets of the 20th century.