Sakharov, Sergei Georgievich

Sergei Georgievich Sakharov was a Soviet graphic artist whose work chiefly centered on advertising. Sakharov studied at the Nizhny Novgorod Art College from 1926 to 1928. In 1928, he and his classmates were transferred to the Aleksei Bogoliubov Art School in Saratov where he graduated in 1930. The artist began his career at Torgsin (Тorgovlia s inostrantsami), the Soviet trade store, where he designed commercial labels. Thereafter, he worked in Moscow at the All-Union Chamber of Commerce, the National River Fleet, and Food Industry Union. Sakharov also designed posters for the bureau of Intourist and for Aeroflot Airlines, and created publicity material for Bolshevik Confectionery in Moscow.

During the Second World War, Sergei Sakharov worked at Gorkii Publishing House while maintaining his position at the Chamber of Commerce. By the 1950s, Sakharov was a recognized name in Soviet advertising circles. One of the artist's enduring designs was the creation of two commercial symbols for Soviet ice cream—the penguin and the sea lion—which became icons to children and adults.

Sakharov produced hundreds of posters during his career. Some key titles are: "With the Five-Year Plan, we will Strengthen the Economic Independence of the USSR, Bolster the Defense of our Country", and "Soviet Ships Should Sail the Waters of All Seas of the World. Buy OSVOD lottery tickets to Strengthen the Soviet Fleet” (both 1933); "Young Sailors, Fiery Heroes of our Great Homeland, be Worthy of the Prodigious Military-Industrial Complex" (1939); "Glory to our Valiant Red Army, [who are] Destroying the Nazi Invaders" (1942); “‘Us’ We convert the Desert into a Blooming Land. ‘Them’ They convert Cities and Villages into a Desert” (1950); and "For the Good of the Motherland, for the Happiness of the People!" (1953). Sakharov produced many poster designs in collaboration with the artist Konstantin Kuzginov.

Sakharov’s work in advertising is prolific. Some of his commercial poster titles include: "Smoke ‘Captain's Cigarettes’" (1939); "Buy Ice Cream from Glavkhladprom" (1951); "Crimean Rose Perfume and Cologne" (1953); "Aeroflot: 24 Hours by Train - An Hour by Plane" (1961), "Autoexport: The Moskvich-407 Automobile" (1964), and "[Drink] Stolichnaia Vodka" (1964-1965).

Sergei Georgievich Sakharov was a member of the USSR Union of Artists. In 1957, he was bestowed the title of Honored Artist of the RSFSR. The artist participated in numerous All-Union and regional art exhibitions and he held a solo exhibition in Moscow in 1957.