Persten

Born 24 September 1958 in Leningrad

1965 Studied painting in the House of Pioneers of Dzerzhinsky district of Leningrad

1973 Enters the Club of Young Art Critics of the State Russian Museum

1977 Becomes a member of art group "Letopis" ("Chronicle")

1978 Starts organizing underground exhibitions

1980-1982 Works in the State Russian Museum

1980 Gets acquainted with M. Larionov´s follower Mariya Alexandrovna Spendiarova, who has a great influence on him and helps him in his artistic studies

1982 Founds "Noviye Khudozhniki" ("New Artists") group, which focuses on folk traditions and M. Larionov`s theory
Other members of the group were O. Kotelnikov, Ye. Kozlov, S. Bugaev Africa, V. Ovchinnikov, K. Khazanovich, V. Gutsevich, I. Savchenkov, V. Tsoy, G. Guryanov, A. Krisanov
Organizes in his own flat the permanent exhibition "ASSA", which functioned until 19987

1983 Founds the Avant-garde music group "Noviye Kompository" ("New Composers") and starts co-operating with the "Populyarnaya Mehanika" Orchestra headed by S. Kuryokhin, also collaborates with the "Kino" rock-group as a concert designer

1984 Founds "Novyi Teatr" ("New Theatre"), puts on a number of performances including "Ballet of Three Untearables", "Anna Karenina", "Idiot", "Shooting Skier", where he mixes the aesthetics of "New Artists" with alternate fad

1985 Founds the Academy of All and Sundry Arts

1987 Takes part as a member of the cast in S. Solovyov´s film "Assa" and collaborates with S. Shutov as a designer. For the artistic design of the movie he is awarded the "Nika" award for the first time in the history of Russian Cinema

1988 Starts to travel actively with his exhibitions to different countries, where he pursues his artistic education. He attends lectures of John Cage, Daniel Buren, Hans Haake

1989 Together with Yu. Lesnikov and V. Mamyshev organize "Piratsloye Televideniye" ("Pirate Television"). He writes scripts, works as a director, an actor and a designer of video films
Becomes an active participant of rave movement, did designing for rave-parties, including the legendary 1991 Gagarin-party in Moscow

1989 Founds the New Academy of Fine Arts called upon to preserve classical traditions in modern art. Professors O. Maslov, V. Kuznetsov, G. Guryanov, O. Tobreluts, B. Matveeva, D. Yegelsky, Ye. Ostrov, A. Medvedev and a number of talented students from Russia, Austria, Germany and France contribute to the Academy´` expositions and educational work

1990-1991 Studies as an intern in the Parisian Institute of Plastic Arts headed by Pontus Hulten

1993 The St. Petersburg Museum of the New Academy of Fine Arts on Ul. Pushkinskaya, 10 is launched. Ever since it has been the venue of exhibitions of the Academy´s professors and students as well as many outstanding painters: Karl Lagerfeld, Gianni Versace, Bruce Weber, Richard Avedon, Pierre and Gill, Alexander Ivanov, Rafael Santi, Mariya Sinyakova-Urechina, Tsi-Bai-Shi, Fyodor Tolstoy, Moisey Nappelbaum and many others. The New Academy is currently involved in extensive exhibition activities in other museums in Russia and abroad

1997 The New Academy opens its courses in the state Russian Museum (Mikhailovskiy palace)

Actively participated insetting up The European Society on Preserving Classical Aesthetics". Among the Society´s members are A. Nebolsin, A. Zaytsev, Yu. Strausova, Ye. Sheff and many others

1998 Starts publishing in co-operation with Andrey Khlobystin the "Khudozhestvennaya Volya" ("Artistic Will") magazine
The State Russian Museum publishes the selection of T. Novikov´ theoretical articles "The New Russian Classicism"

1999 Collaborates with A. Medvedev on the books "The Capture of Europe" vol. I-II, "The Capture of Sense"

2000 Publishes "Horizons", a compilation of the lectures he had held in the Leningrad Free University in 1989 covering perspective issues and "Intercontacts", a book about the history of Leningrad/St. Petersburg´` international artistic ties in the last quarter of the 20th century
Until his demise holds lectures on the history of Arts in different schools of Moscow and Russia

2002 Collaborates with A. Medvedev on the first-ever Russian biography of King Ludwig the second Bavarian

Opens the St. Petersburg Museum of Contemporary Art on 10 Pushkinskaya St.