Ilya Ginzburg (1859-1939) – Russian sculptor, professor, master of monumental and miniature sculpture of late academism, close to The Itinerants; head of the sculpture department of the Petrograd State Liberal Arts Workshops.

Ilya Ginzburg created monuments to Nikolai Gogol (in Sorochyntsi), Ivan Aivazovsky (in Feodosia), Alexander Pushkin (in Ekaterinoslavl). The author of the tombstone Vladimir Stasov (Museum of City Sculpture, St. Petersburg).

In Soviet time, Ginzburg participated in the implementation of monumental propaganda plan, created a number of sculptural groups dedicated to the revolution: "February 1917", "May Celebrations", "In the Days of October" (1926). His most renowned works after the revolutionary period were the monument to Georgi Plekhanov in front of the Technological Institute and the monument to Dmitri Mendeleev near the building of Weights and Measures Chamber on Moskovsky Avenue in Leningrad.

The monument to the representative of the international revolutionary movement G. Plekhanov was inaugurated on May 3, 1925. It is not by chance that the monument stands in front of the St. Petersburg Institute of Technology. In accordance with Lenin's plan of monumental propaganda, it appeared there as one of the first monuments to revolutionary functionaries.

In 1890, while Mendeleev was still alive, Ilya Ginzburg created his small-scale sculptural portrait, later cast in bronze and purchased by the scientist himself. In1930, on the basis of this portrait Ginzburg on his own initiative made a model of the monument 2.8 meters high and presented it to the Academy of Sciences. Mendeleev looks quite naturally there – comfortably seated in an armchair, with leg over leg, the scientist seems to be relaxing while smoking a cigarette.

Ginzburg is also known as a master of small statuary (statuettes of Ivan Shishkin, Vasily Vereshchagin, Ilya Repin, Vasily Surikov, Leo Tolstoy, Dmitri Mendeleev and others).

Ilya Ginzburg exhibited his works at many exhibitions, including academic exhibitions (from 1884 to 1918, with interruptions). In 1900, the sculptor was awarded a gold medal at the World Exhibition in Paris, in 1904–- a gold medal at the World Exhibition in St Louis. He also participated in other international art exhibitions: in Munich (1893, 1895, 1901, 1909, 1913), Berlin (1896), Venice (1897, 1914), Liège (1905), World Exhibitions in Chicago (1893) and Rome (1911).

Ilya Yakovlevich was also engaged in literary – he wrote stories and critical essays in "The News", “Russian Word”, "Son of the Fatherland". His autobiography was published in "Mir Bozhiy" (1880). In 1908, a book of his memoirs "From My Life" was published.

Ilya Ginzburg died on January 3, 1939 and was buried in the Necropolis of Masters of Arts. The tombstone of the great sculptor was a sarcophagus made of polished gabbro with the shaped moulding and base from the Museum of City Sculpture repository.

Creative works of I. Ginzburg is represented in many museum collections, including the State Tretyakov Gallery, the State Russian Museum, the Historical Museum, the Museum of the Russian Academy of Arts and others. Museum Collection also features works of Ilya Ginzburg. For the sculptor's birth anniversary we have prepared a photo album, which features the sculptor's works from the museum Collection exposition.
Biography of the master is posted in the section "Authors".