Talented restorer Nikolay Fedyshin died

July 25, 2016

His fate was closely connected with the Vologda State Museum-Preserve since childhood. Nikolay Fedyshin was a representative of the famous museum dynasty. His grandparents – Ivan Vasilyevich and Ekaterina Nikolaevna – were among the founders of the museum. His father, Nikolay Ivanovich Fedyshin, was a highly qualified restorer.

Nikolay Fedyshin liked Old Russian art since childhood. He worked in the Vologda State Museum-Preserve as a fine art restorer of tempera painting since 1984 and up to the present. He was trained directly in the restoration workshops of the museum under the tactful guidance of his father - a great professional, an experienced and wise instructor. Nikolay Fedyshin improved his skills during five training sessions in the All-Russian Art Research and Restoration Centre named after Academician I.E. Grabar under the direction of L.A. Mironova, restorer of the 1st category. In January 1995, he was conferred the 1st qualification category of the fine art restorer of easel tempera painting.  

Working in the Vologda State Museum-Preserve for many years, Nikolay Fedyshin conserved and restored dozens of works of Old Russian art. Over 30 of them underwent full restoration.

He participated in restoration of the monumental painting in the St. Sophia Cathedral and the Church of St. John the Baptist in Roshcheniye in Vologda and emergency work on disinfection and strengthening of the iconostases of these churches.

Nikolay Fedyshin cooperated with the Kirillo-Belozersky Museum-Reserve where he worked as a fine art restorer since 2007.

“It turned out that in June 2007 when it was necessary to transfer the collection of the Old Russian painting from the old storage facility to a new repository, the museum didn’t have tempera painting restorers. The icons were kept in the unheated rooms on the wooden hand-made shelves for many years. Some of them were in a very bad state. It was necessary to remove dust from the articles and to strengthen them before transportation. Nikolay Nikolayevich Fedyshin and Arkady Rudolfovich Polyakov, restorers of the Vologda State Museum-Preserve, came to assistance. They took the icons from the shelves day by day and put them in order. It was so easy and safe to work with them, so we didn’t part any more”, said O.V. Voronova.

Thanks to Nikolay Fedyshin’s large work, dozens of icons from the museum collection have been restored. He dealt with the whole icon collection of the Kirillo-Belozersky Museum-Reserve.

Nikolay Fedyshin strengthened the icons from the Church of St. John Climacus (1572). The icons were dismounted and placed back into the iconostasis under his direction when the frame was reconstructed. He also restored the icons from the Church of Transfiguration (1595).

The icons from the collection of the Kirillo-Belozersky Museum-Reserve that were restored by Nikolay Fedyshin were exhibited in the Vologda State Museum-Preserve, the Russian Museum, the Tretyakov Gallery and the Louvre.

The most significant art work of Nikolay Fedyshin was restoration of the icon “The Virgin Hodegetria” (16th century) from the Goritsy Convent of the Resurrection. It is being exhibited in the Refectory at present.

In March 2016, N.N. Fedyshin completed restoration of the 17th-century icon “Christ in Glory” from the Gate Church of Epiphany in the Ferapontov Monastery. The original image was overpainted in the 20th century.

In April 2016, Nikolay Fedyshin began to restore the frame of the icon “Akathist of the Virgin” (18th century). It is a signed frame, therefore the restorer prepared this museum item for the exhibition “Signed and Dated Works of Church Art” open in the People’s House now. The frame of the icon “Akathist of the Virgin” is the last work of N.N. Fedyshin carried out in the Kirillo-Belozersky Museum-Reserve.

Working in the museum in Kirillov, Nikolay Fedyshin restored different articles, was at the head of restoration and willingly shared his invaluable experience with young colleagues.

He has trained two talented pupils, successors of his work, fine art restorers of the Kirillo-Belozersky Museum-Reserve – Alexey Rubtsov and Nikolay Petukhov.

Young specialists Alexey and Nikolay started to work under the direction of N.N. Fedyshin, learnt classical methods and new techniques of restoration.

Alexey Rubtsov and Nikolay Petukhov speak about their teacher as a person who rendered assistance to them in any difficult situation, gave consultations and helpful hints.

The staff of the Kirillo-Belozersky Museum-Reserve suffered a tragic loss of Nikolay Nikolayevich Fedyshin – a talented restorer and head, a great professional, a tactful and kind colleague.

All museum employees present their condolences to relatives of Nikolay Fedyshin.

The lying-in-state with Nikolay Fedyshin will take place in Vologda on July 27. It will begin at 53 Sovetsky Avenue at 12:30.