Visions from the Cosmos

Years passed, and the circumstances that characterised that global political order faded away. But the zone of phantoms — created by the battles and the colossal migration of human communities that existed in those times — remained unchanged. And these energy-phantoms made themselves known and manifested themselves in the society of the modern inhabitants of that once-mighty empire of Asian peoples.

And so, when I moved to these lands — which happened far from being in accordance with my own will... It was simply that the Subtle Plane, having transferred me from governing the city of Shakhrisabz, which was also the birthplace of Tamerlane, to the capital of his empire, thereby fulfilled the far-reaching plans of the Cosmos in the program of the Transfiguration and Ascension of planet Earth. I did not realise this immediately, but I did feel that my transition to governing the Samarkand Region was part of some profound program of Heaven.

For it was incredible that a young Russian man should take over the governance of a national region of Uzbekistan (though by that time I had already lived in Central Asia for more than 30 years and knew not only the Kazakh and Uzbek languages, but also the customs and rites of the local population).

And yet, the transfer from a small town to the largest region of Uzbekistan came as a great surprise — not only to me, but to most of the officials I had previously worked among. In effect, it was a major career advancement for me.

But the Cosmos, as we see, had its own plans. The best proof of this is the painting which I saw on the Subtle Plane in the last days of my stay in Shakhrisabz. Here is that painting. It is called "Blessing. The Keys to the Fortress."

In the years that followed, the painting "Thought on Eternity" always attracted great interest at all exhibitions of my works that I organized in the USSR, and after its dissolution, in Russia and other countries around the world. The hologram of the painting "Thought on Eternity" functioned as a man-made pictorial collider (I will leap ahead a few decades.

Thus, in 2011, under the auspices of the United Nations, a fateful document on the preservation of humanity on Earth was published, four hundred pages in length, and on the cover of this epochal document was my painting "Thought on Eternity." Naturally, thousands of artists would have dreamed of having their work featured on the cover of such an important UN document, which, after its release, was distributed for implementation in 220 countries around the world.

But, to support me during that difficult and stressful period of coming to terms with the "End of the World," the Subtle Plane arranged psychological support for me. Unexpectedly (as always in such cases), a correspondent arrived in the Samarkand Region from Moscow — from the digest journal Sputnik, published abroad on behalf of the Soviet Union, which was regularly distributed, once a month, in 120 countries around the world in 45 languages.

And so, this correspondent, sometime after several months had passed following my cosmic experiences, conducted an interview with me, and, literally in March of that same year, 1986, an article was published in that journal, spanning several pages, entitled "Evgeny Berezikov – A Happy Man," no more and no less.

Analyse the entire press of the Soviet Union over the past 70 years, and you will not find a single other article about a high-ranking leader in any field of activity, of whom it was declared to the whole world that he was a "Happy Man." But this impossibility, in my case, became possible because I myself am the impossible within the possible! For this is the work of the Cosmos...

Next, I am providing the text of this material, published in the journal Sputnik, No. 3, 1986.

From the canvas, the intelligent, weary eyes of "She Who Watches" look at you with a hint of irony. What is it — a mysterious unearthly creature, or simply the hurried flow of water in a river, reminding us of the fleetingness of life itself, or perhaps the restless movement of thought? The enigmatic gaze intrigues and stirs the imagination...

Berezikov's paintings are at once simple and complex. The artist does not impose his own interpretation on the viewer; rather, he invites them to penetrate the meaning of what is depicted for themselves. A kind of clue is provided by the captions beneath the paintings. The simple, laconic titles serve as a key to unlocking the artist's intention and understanding his remarkable images and symbols: "Solar Man," "To Drink the Cup," "Thought on Eternity," "Farewell to Nature," "Fruit of Knowledge"... Each painting represents the artist's candid "yes" and "no," his "for" and "against." A love for humanity and for all living things on earth — alongside an uncompromising rejection of vices such as greed, cruelty, and soullessness. Berezikov himself admits that he had long been searching for a way to express the feelings, emotions, and ideas that stirred his consciousness.

Specialists immediately took notice of his works, regarding them as a distinctive phenomenon. "He manages to depict with his brush such phenomena and ideas that had previously seemed impossible to convey in painting," said Uzbek academician of painting, the artist Ruzi Chariev, about Berezikov's work.
Evgeny Berezikov, Russian by nationality, lives in Uzbekistan, in one of the most picturesque and exotic cities — the ancient Samarkand.

He came to Central Asia as a six-year-old child: at the very beginning of the war, his family was evacuated to Kazakhstan. In 1942, notification came of his father's death, who had fallen in battle near Leningrad.

In that time of hardship for all Soviet people, children grew up early — their concerns were far from childish. Yesterday's boys had to think about their daily bread. At nine or ten years old, Zhenya Berezikov was already helping Kazakh shepherds drive flocks of sheep. Riding on a camel, he had to cover tens, even hundreds of kilometres from the collective farm to the pastures. This was how his working life began.

... Years passed, the war died down. Berezikov moved to Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, and after completing his army service, came to work at a factory. He first worked as a stoker, then as an excavator operator. He was very young at the time, but his energetic, decisive character and his exactingness toward himself and others already singled him out as a leader. Even the older, experienced workers listened to his words.

Therefore, when at one of the Communist Party meetings it came time to elect a new secretary for the factory's party organisation, Evgeny Berezikov's candidacy aroused no doubts in anyone.
And a few years later, having graduated from the Higher Party School in Moscow, Berezikov became a professional party functionary.

Today Evgeny Berezikov is a well-known figure in the Republic of Uzbekistan. In recent years he has held a leadership post in the Samarkand Regional Party Committee. Before that, he was the First Secretary of the CPSU in the city of Shakhrisabz, the birthplace of Tamerlane.

Being by nature a restless person, he does not remain in his office for long. In the course of a single day, Berezikov can be found among the workers at a factory, in the office of a collective farm, and in a cotton field. He concerns himself with everything and has time for everything. How he manages this is a mystery to me. Knowing only approximately the daily volume of his work, one can only marvel at the inexhaustible energy and endurance of this man.

• "What do you consider the most important thing in your work?" I ask Evgeny Efimovich.
• "The matters I have to deal with day in and day out cannot be divided into main and secondary. Everything is important, and nothing can tolerate delay."

But perhaps the busiest time for us is the harvest season. It is well known that our republic is the main supplier of cotton. The importance of this raw material for the country's economy is enormous. That is why, for the party organs as well, the harvesting and delivery of cotton to the state is a matter of special importance.

But there are plenty of other concerns as well: both industrial and purely everyday ones. I think the main thing that attracts Berezikov in his intensely demanding work is the constant communication, the frequent meetings with people of the most diverse ages, professions, and ranks. In any audience he feels confident, converses easily, and quickly establishes rapport. Even on those rare days when he spends all his time at his desk, he is rarely alone there.

There is, in my view, a very capacious word — involvement. It is precisely this word that characterises this man most accurately. Involvement in everything that happens around him, a responsiveness to the grief and joy of others — this is a quality that is valuable in general. For a party leader, for a person whose decisions affect the fates of others, it is simply indispensable. I understood this when I came to know Berezikov more closely. I understood why for him there are no secondary concerns and cannot be.

• "Evgeny Efimovich, but surely you do have some free hours, some time for yourself?"
• "Of course," Berezikov smiles. "Not much, but I do. You see, I've even started painting. And I managed to write a novel over three holidays."

I am not surprised; I already know that he is referring to the novel Red Bukhara, published in Tashkent three years ago.

By that time Berezikov was already known as a publicist, the author of serious problem-oriented essays and articles devoted to the history and development of national culture, and to questions of the preservation of architectural and everyday monuments. Thanks to these publications, a broad readership both in the republic itself and far beyond its borders became acquainted with the distinctive art of Uzbek folk masters, ancient customs, rites, and legends. One of the essays in this series — "Three Peculiarities of Chiyalbazar" — readers of Sputnik could have encountered on the pages of our journal.

On Berezikov's initiative, a Public Council for Urban Planning was established in Samarkand. Its members include not only professional architects but also folk builders, who have long been renowned among local residents for their talented work.

The refined Eastern flavour of Samarkand obliges builders and designers to carefully preserve the appearance of the ancient city. Following the Council's recommendations, many modern buildings are complemented with traditional elements of national architecture, and unique ancient structures are being restored.

Recently Evgeny Berezikov celebrated his fiftieth birthday. Of course, this is not an age for drawing conclusions. And yet...

• "Evgeny Efimovich, you cannot be called a favourite of fortune. Everything you have achieved in life did not fall into your hands by itself. Tell me, do you consider yourself a happy person?"

"I have never really thought about it. Remember, in one film a hero says: happiness is when you are understood. It sounds a little naive, but in essence it is true. In my work — working with people — this is the foundation of everything. When I write a journal article about the need to preserve one's culture, I count on understanding. And the paintings did not appear by chance either. I felt that in this concise form I could sometimes say even more than in a lengthy article or essay. And if they have touched or moved someone, then I truly feel myself a happy person".

It was headed by the Chairman of the Union of Artists of Uzbekistan, Bahadyr Jalolov. He was so admired by my works that he even asked for one of the paintings, "Black Apples" (this painting was the fruit of reflection in the struggle for the preservation of Nature), in order to display it in his studio and exhibit it to students of the Institute of Culture. I, of course, granted his request, for only in this way could the hologram of the painting work among people.

The same exhibition, but this time organised in Tashkent in March 1987, was visited by a guest from India — the President of the Urdu Academy of Arts, Gopi Chang Narang — and he was literally stunned by what he saw. In the guest book he left the following entry: "Beyond all expectations!!! This is incomprehensible!!! The stamp of uniqueness." And following our meeting, Dr. Gopi Chang Narang suggested that I hold an exhibition of my paintings in India. Naturally, this was a new stage in my work as a painter.

World Chess Champion Anatoly Karpov expressed himself very distinctively about my paintings. While in Samarkand in 1985, he visited the exhibition and wished to meet me, and afterward presented me with his book "On Chess Mastery," in which he left the following inscription: "Sincerely amazed by the versatility of Evgeny Berezikov's talent." In giving this assessment of the paintings that had astonished him with their cosmic philosophy, Anatoly Karpov also added his opinion of my songs, which he had heard on the plane while flying from Moscow to Tashkent, and then from Tashkent to Samarkand. At that time, on board the aircraft of Uzbek Airlines, in order to maintain the national character of the southern republic, my songs were constantly played: "Shakhrisabz," "The Golden Domes of Samarkand," and "The Musical Teahouse." And Anatoly Karpov said to me at our meeting: "Evgeny Efimovich, I heard the song 'Shakhrisabz' several times on the radio in Moscow and thought it was a folk song about a mythical city in the East. But when I learned at your exhibition that you are not only a regional leader and an artist, but also the author of such unique songs, I had no other words left, and I wrote: 'Sincerely amazed by the versatility of talent...'"

In Samarkand in 1985, the journey of my paintings to the people had only just begun. This was followed by exhibitions of holographic canvases, painted by me from visions from the Cosmos, in Tashkent in 1987, in Moscow in 2008, in Delhi – India, and in the Russian cities of Yekaterinburg, Tyumen, Tomsk, Seversk, and Ufa. And everywhere, people, sensing the unusual energy of the paintings from the Cosmos, literally came in their thousands to the exhibitions of Berezikov's painting.