Tamara Khytrova

Tamara Khytrova was a talented Ukrainian artist, known for her thematic paintings and still lifes.

Tamara Khytrova's paintings were featured in numerous exhibitions: all-union (from 1940), republican (from 1945), and even international (from 1947).

The artist was born in 1913 in the city of Pskov (now part of the Russian Federation). She studied at the Odesa Art Institute from 1931 to 1934, under the mentorship of Pavlo Volokydyn.

Later, from 1934 to 1940, she continued her studies in Kyiv. Her teacher there was Oleksii Shovkunenko — a gifted artist and an equally gifted educator. She is rightly regarded as his finest student.

From 1945 she was a member of the Union of Artists of the former Soviet Union. In 1960 she was awarded a Certificate of Honor from the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Ukrainian SSR. From 1983 — Honoured Artist of Ukraine.

The artist passed away in 1991. Tamara Khytrova's original paintings are held in museum, gallery, and private collections in Ukraine and beyond, including in museums in Borshchiv, Kharkiv, Kyiv, and Donetsk.

The artist specialised primarily in portraits, landscapes, and still lifes. Among her well-known works are Collective Farm Woman Motorcyclist (1940), Portrait of Partisan M. Kovalenko (1945), Holiday on the Collective Farm (1947), By the Native Dnipro (1949), Welcoming the Hero of Space (1963), and many others.

UFDA digitized two works by the artist from the collection of the Regional Communal Museum of Local History in Borshchiv: March (1985) and Flood (1955). These paintings are now available for viewing on the fund's website.

The artist's style can be placed within Socialist Realism, which dominated the USSR at the time. The artwork of Tamara Khytrova was grounded in the realist school of painting, characterised by precise draughtsmanship, academic composition, and deep engagement with colour — all shaped by the influence of her outstanding mentors.

She worked in the field of easel painting — works created on an easel and existing as independently significant pieces (landscapes, portraits, still lifes). She was the author of thematic paintings and still lifes, as well as lyrical works depicting the everyday life and customs of ordinary people. 

Tamara Khytrova's paintings are rendered in a realist manner — vibrant, with soft and warm tones. Her work is distinguished by bright, harmonious, and often quietly lyrical colour choices.