Nikita Budkov » American Legacy Fine Arts

Available Work

Nikita Budkov

Of Sorrow and Love

Oil on linen
30" x 24"

$4,800
Nikita Budkov

In the Light; LA River, Atwater Village

Oil on panel
12" x 12"

$1,400
Nikita Budkov

Patterns, Still Life in Copper

Oil on panel
20" x 16"

$2,000
Nikita Budkov

Mystic Science, Making of Kombucha

Oil on linen
16" x 16"

$1,700
Nikita Budkov

Renewal Tea Time

Oil on linen
10" x 12"

$1,200

Biography

Contemporary Russian-American artist Nikita Budkov was born in Zvenigorod, a suburb of Moscow, Russia on August 16, 1995. As a young boy, he enjoyed reading classic fairytales, science fiction novels, and comics, which all helped shape his imagination and eventually inspired him to express his thoughts through pencil drawings. During his teen years, he became a fan of British and American rock and was later exposed to various genres including symphonic music. Budkov says, “Music is an eternal companion on my career journey.”

As a child, Nikita received his training at the Children’s Art School Program in Odintsovo and successfully graduated with honors. He then enrolled in an architectural course at the Moscow Architecture Institute with the goal of becoming a professional architect. However, his life changed greatly after he had an opportunity to come to the United States of America in 2012 as an exchange student. Upon graduating from Cotter High School in Minnesota, where he was crowned Homecoming King, Budkov was awarded an honorable mention in Scholastic Art & Writing from the state of Minnesota. From this point, he was inspired to pursue a career in traditional fine art.

Budkov traveled to Los Angeles to study traditional painting from a different perspective and to master his artistic skills. For three years he studied full time at the Los Angeles Academy of Figurative Art and taught two classes at LAAFA during the summer of his senior year. Budkov graduated with top honors from LAAFA and is now a member of the widely recognized and prestigious California Art Club as well as Assistant to the renowned California plein air artist Peter Adams.

Nikita Budkov’s painting style is based on contemporary realism, and his visual storytelling often includes mythological and ancient symbolic elements. Artist Statement: “Above all, I appreciate ambient atmosphere, and pursue the mystical and the beautiful qualities of life.”

Selected Awards and Honors

2023
Tehachapi Arts Commission 1st Place for Best Urban, Like a Summer Day, Villa La Paz, National Chavel Center

2021
Realism Award of Excellence, Oil Painters of America

2021
Best Artist Under 30, 11^th Annual Plein Air Salon August Competition, Plein Air Magazine

2021
First Place Overall, 10th Annual Plein Air Salon February Competition, Plein Air Magazine

2021
ARC 15^th Salon Finalist

2020
Best Figure, 10th Annual Plein Air Salon August Competition, Plein Air Magazine

2020
Best Artist Under 30, 10th Annual Plein Air Salon August Competition, Plein Air Magazine

2019
Best Artist Under 30, 9th Annual Plein Air Salon August/September Competition, Plein Air Magazine

2019
ARC 14^th Salon Staff Award

2019
Best Artist Under 30, 9th Annual Plein Air Salon February/March Competition, Plein Air Magazine

2013
Minnesota State Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, Honorable Mention

Selected Exhibitions

2022
“2020 Hindsight,” California Art Club, Big Dog Arts, Tejon Ranch, CA

2022
"Spring Artist Showcase: Nikita Budkov" City of Fontana, April 5 - May 27

2021
“Western Regional Exhibition,” Oil Painters of America, Mark Arts, Wichita, KS

2021
“110th Annual Gold Medal Exhibition,” California Art Club, Hilbert Museum of California Art, Orange

2021
“California Highlights,” American Legacy Fine Arts, Pasadena, CA

2021
“On Location in Malibu 2021”, Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art, Pepperdine University, Malibu

2021
“Artist in his Studio 2,” Glendale

2021
“30^th Annual National Juried Exhibition of Traditional Oils,” OPA, Escondido Museum, Escondido

2021
“Renewal and Rebirth,” California Art Club, Pasadena

2021
“Mars: An Artistic Mission,” California Art Club, Pasadena

2021
“Car Culture,” OCCCA, Santa Ana

2020
“Artist in his Studio,” Glendale

2020
“ARC 14^th Salon Exhibition,” Sotheby’s, NYC

2020
“Gold Medal,” California Art Club, Hilbert Museum of California Art, Orange

2019
“ARC 14^th Salon Exhibition,” MEAM Museum, Barcelona, Spain

2019
“Fleeting Moments 2^nd Biennale: Works en Plein Air,” American Legacy Fine Arts, Pasadena, CA

2019
“The Imaginary,” Carnegie Art Museum, Oxnard

2019
“Gold Medal,” California Art Club, Pasadena Museum of California Art, Pasadena

2019

“On the Cusp: Morning and Evening Light,” Hillside Fine Art, Claremont

2018
“The Songbook, A Show of Recent Portraits & Landscapes By Nikita Budkov,” Los Angeles Academy of Academy of Figurative Art, September 29, 2018

2018
“A Collector’s Feast: Indulge a New Artwork Under $4000,” American Legacy Fine Arts, Pasadena

2018
“Monumental Miniatures,” California Art Club, the Old Mill Foundation, San Marino

2018
“Welcoming New Artists,” Hillside Fine Art, Claremont

2018
“Sunny California,” Hillside Fine Art, Claremont

2018
“Gold Medal,” California Art Club, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles, Los Angeles

2018
“Canyons to Coves,” California Art Club, the Old Mill Foundation, San Marino

2017
“Fleeting Moments: Works en Plein Air,” American Legacy Fine Arts, Pasadena, CA

2016
“Student Art Exhibition,” Los Angeles Academy of Figurative Art, Artem Gallery, Los Angeles

2015
“Student Art Exhibition,” Los Angeles Academy of Figurative Art, Loft at Liz’s, Los Angeles

2009
“Children’s Fantasies,” Odintsovo, Russia

Professional Membership

Mentor Program Member, California Art Club
Associate Membership, Oil Painters of America

Press and Publications

Peter Adams and Nikita Budkov in Experience Tehachapi 2023

Peter Adams and Nikita Budkov Featured in Tehachapi Experience for Awards at Art Tehachapi 2023

If the quality displayed at the July Art 2023 Tehachapi is any indication, Tehachapi is fast becoming a, “Destination for representational fine artists and collectors.”