Anna Kostrova

Anna Alexandrovna Kostrova (Russian: А́нна Алекса́ндровна Костро́ва; 22 November 1909 – 7 July 1994) was a Russian Soviet realist painter, graphic artist and book illustrator, who lived and worked in Leningrad. She was a member of the Leningrad Union of Artists, regarded as a representative of the Leningrad school of painting.

Anna Alexandrovna Kostrova was born on 22 November 1909 in the village Belostok, Omsk Province, West Siberia.

In 1925 Anna Kostrova enrolled at the Omsk School of Industrial Art, where she studied with V. Trofimov and S. Feldman. In 1928 Anna Kostrova graduated from the School of Industrial Art in Omsk.

In 1930 Anna Kostrova moved to Leningrad. From 1934 she participated in Art Exhibitions. Anna Kostrova painted portraits, landscapes, still lifes, worked as easel painter, graphic artist and art illustrator. Her personal exhibitions were in Leningrad (1973, 1977, 1979) and in Moscow (1974, 1983).

In 1930s Anna Kostrova was travelling with her husband, artist Nikolai Kostrov on the White Sea and Barents Sea, the Crimea, Ukraine and Novgorod, during which painted a lot from life.

In 1940, Anna Kostrova was admitted to the Leningrad Union of Artists.

In 1950–1970 years, Anna Kostrova illustrated children's books for the largest publishing houses in Moscow and Leningrad. Together with Nikolai Kostrov she travelled to Armenia, Norway, according to the ancient cities of Vologda and Vladimir-Suzdal land, cruise on the Danube. Impressions from these trips have become material for numerous works of graphics and painting.

Kostrova Anna Alexandrovna died in Saint Petersburg in 1994. Paintings and graphics by Anna Kostrova reside in the State Russian Museum, in Art Museums and private collections in Russia, Germany, Finland and others.