Denys Gorodnychyi

Denys Gorodnychyi shares his uniquely personal view of the world, and encourages us all to do the same.

Denys Gorodnychyi (also known as Denis Gorodnichy) is a Ukrainian landscape painter, whose work is instantly recognizable for its mood, texture and laser-precise values, along with a sublime beauty. He’s been exhibiting in Poltava, Kharkov, Kiev for many years, mainly in Ukraine, and paints the central Ukrainian landscapes.

Denis in his ‘studio’

Tonalism.com: Do you call or think of yourself as a tonalist? How or why / why not?

Denys Gorodnychyi: It depends on what is meant by the term "Tonalism". In my understanding, this term characterizes the harmonization and generalization in the coloristic solution of the picture. And so, if that is the meaning of Tonalism, then yes maybe I belong to the tonalists. But in fact, I have never thought about such a label. I never sought to paint in any labelled style or direction. It seems to me that any art does not tolerate any framework and restrictions. Therefore, it is difficult for me to answer such a question. But still, if I am already attributed to the tonalist artists, then it is likely because I support the idea that any work of landscape painting expresses a certain mood, and this mood is expressed by the color values and relationships of the general coloring. And this is my basic rule, which I follow in my creative work. My aim is to keep true to the natural laws of tone and value which makes the work “alive”.

Tonalism.com: What’s been the story of your journey as an artist?

Denys Gorodnychyi: It all started back in childhood... I remember well that period of my life so far ... I was fascinated by the beauty of the world. This admiration has not so far ceased to occupy my heart to this day. The use of paints is already a consequence of this admiration. It was a way to express my feelings, and it turned out to be the most convenient tool for me... paint and canvas. Naturally, I went to an art school (when I was 11 years old), then I went to university, specializing in "artist". Next came an independent development of art materials. And most importantly, what has been the main "teacher" for me all this time is nature itself. It is my Love for her, a great desire to know not the laws, to look deep into the pristine and miraculous beauty, which leads me to this day.

Group open-airs are very useful for the artist. The exchange of experience among colleagues was and remains very important and invaluable. Working in a circle of like-minded people allows "growth" very quickly. The practice of collaborative viewing at the end of an open-air day works well. Discussion of work among colleagues. But still, every artist has to go his own way. The most valuable thing is to keep your originality. Art loves sincerity. I think, the more sincere we are, the more chances are not to lose our originality. 

Once I left college, I had a start but didn’t know what was ahead of me. I’m lucky enough to have inherited a great work ethic from my upbringing.  That lead me right down the path of my next chapter of being an "artist now”. I studied, studied and studied…  I started in on the plein-air movement and did nothing but that for about 3 or 4 years.  I studied under a few great artists and just painted and painted. 

Tonalism.com: What are the main objectives of your current approach?

Denys Gorodnychyi: The main goal for me today remains the desire to preserve the truth of life in pictures.  Naturally, this is only my subjective perception of the truth, but I am sincere in this. I also strive for a minimum of elements in the expression of the vision.  Leaving only the main thing, only the feelings ... just like an elegant musical piece… where an extra note will ruin the fragile beauty of the moment, because then hundreds of sounds will be immediately noticeable.

Tonalism.com: What was the actual process or series of events that led you to paint as you do now?

Denys Gorodnychyi: There are a lot of these events, and it will not be possible to list them all ... they are very inconspicuous, practically fleeting ... but they all make up the present picture.  I can only say that I try to pay attention to something beautiful, something delightful ... that which is significant and ‘sublime’ to me.  This is precisely the ‘building material’ from which we humans are built.  From what we notice around us, what speaks to us, these are the things which shape us as individuals.

Tonalism.com: Please describe a little bit of your painting process.

Denys Gorodnychyi: Each picture begins with a feeling.  This is the foundation of any picture for me.  Then, it's the mechanism of the relationship of ideas and techniques to realize this feeling, focusing on how to most successfully conceive of the idea of this feeling onto the canvas.  

I do not create preparatory drawings for a painting.  Also, I do not like to sketch a picture...  except for small open-air studies, which I want to increase in size back in the studio. 

Often I work on an impression, on an imaginary feeling or image thus the actual painting steps are of secondary importance to the idea or feeling. It has happened that I’ve started with one idea and ended with the other. That is, the direction of thoughts can change dramatically.  It was not uncommon for me to start painting the winter, but in the end the summer was depicted in the picture. I never have a plan of my actions... I myself never know how the work will go... I like to experiment with working methods, and I like to try and come up with a lot of unique options for this.

I usually use a palette of 8-10 colors.  I prefer dark saturated colors that can be whitened. These are mainly single-pigment paints: kraplak red, cadmium yellow, viridian green, cobalt blue and I use light ocher, red ocher, indian yellow, burnt umber, siena and I mainly use bristle brushes.

I work on the principle: "From the general to the particular."  Painting is a combination of color spots, made up of these various combinations. The artist should set himself a overall pictorial task, so as not to engage in counting the leaves on a tree. The most governing goals in painting are to fill the picture with air, light and space.  

The technical part of the work is to find a method of applying paint to the canvas for a particular element, because the texture determines a lot. This is really a very important technical point. For example, a cloudless sky does not need to be painted in the same way as grass is painted and so on. 

I think texture can express much more than just a smooth surface.  It is very good to combine textured and smooth painting in one picture.  In general, a lot depends on the method of applying the paint.  The more interesting this texture, the more interesting the whole picture.  The texture can express mood, state, texture can sound differently ... and all this attracts me very much. That's why I study different ways of applying a paint layer to the surface. Why many Ukrainian or Russian artists like to paint in a textured way - I don’t know ... Maybe it's some kind of mental compound.

The main driving force for the artist, in addition to inspiration, is contemplation, the study of nature and of course constant practice. If one is open to contemplation, of slowness of thought and a willingness to embrace nature, the more and more new ‘doors’ to the secrets of painting will open.

It seems my compositional choice is subconscious ... I choose what interests me and what inspires me ... I really like to portray the sky and water, and sometimes I give them most of the composition.  Something should be the main thing in the composition, something secondary … there may be some kind of accents… but I am not guided by any rules for this.

For each work I spend a different amount of time.  It happens that I make a good medium-sized painting sketch in about an hour (about 40x50 centimeters), and sometimes I paint 4-5 sessions of 4 hours in one small picture ... therefore, it is difficult to unequivocally say how long each piece takes.  And of course, there are often failures on the canvas, then I erase everything with a palette knife and start again.

I do not use tinted canvas. I always use a palette knife, which is a very convenient and irreplaceable tool for me. The basic rule for me is the conformity of tonal harmony that exists in nature.  I think that you can sacrifice the form, but you cannot sacrifice the right tone, if you want the picture to look convincing and lively.

Birch Grove, Issac Levitan

Tonalism.com: Could you name any specific influences on your work?

Denys Gorodnychyi: If we talk about predecessors, I will note the work of Peter Levchenko, Arkhip Kuindzhi, Isaac Levitan, Anders Zorn, Joaquin Sorolla ... personally, that era inspires me  in which the above-mentioned masters of painting lived.  I recall Levitan's painting "Birch Grove", which I once saw at the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow... an incredibly "thin", poetic work of art, really a masterpiece ... all the more, you should take into account the size of this picture, it’s very small... but  how much life is in it... nothing like this I have not seen so far ...

Tonalism.com:  Any advice for the aspiring painters / tonalists?

Denys Gorodnychyi: In my opinion, the most important thing for an artist to remain original. Therefore, I myself will say that it is better to develop an entire vision of the world, than to develop my skills. Work on expressing what you truly feel about a subject.

 Contemplate, study nature and practice painting.  This is the main thing.  Look for a balance between what you see and what you know.  Add to this your feelings - and you will get a masterpiece!

Tonalism.com: Saving the big question for last: What is art’s purpose in the world? And/or is there anything I didn’t ask that you want people to know about your work and/or your personal practice? 

Denys Gorodnychyi: The goal of art, in my subjective opinion, is to learn about the world and share this beauty via the human soul. The artist learns to see the beauty around, and shares this personal and unique experience with the world.

You can see a selection of works available from Denys here.