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Brentwood portrait artist answers Vatican's call

Babailov to paint pope's official image as he did for John Paul II

By BONNIE BURCH
Staff Writer

BRENTWOOD — In a quest to find an artist to produce the official portrait of Pope Benedict XVI, the Vatican Museum staff didn't go to the renowned art schools of Rome or Paris.

Instead, they found their man at his home studio in Brentwood, Tenn.

Igor Babailov, who has extensive experience painting world leaders, business executives and entertainment figures, was to arrive in Vatican City today for a personal meeting and sitting with Benedict.

"I really don't want to say exactly what I have in mind. I like to see the reaction on people's faces when they see the finished piece for the first time," Babailov said of the final oil painting, which could take months to complete.

This isn't the first time the Russian native has painted a pontiff. In 2004, he presented "Believe," an official historical portrait, to Pope John Paul II in commemoration of World Youth Day. That work, which shows John Paul surrounded by a multinational group of youngsters, hangs in the papal palace in Castel Gandolfo, south of Rome.

"John Paul loved children. All the youth represent the values that were important to John Paul. The different nationalities represent basically that we're one big family. It says 'We're all family here.' And he, here in the middle, is the father of the family — the Holy Father," Babailov said as he pointed to a copy of his past artwork.

Babailov isn't sure exactly why he has become a favorite papal portrait artist, his reputation for capturing the subtleties of his subjects in realistic settings has attracted attention in many
circles.

Dawn Whitelaw, who taught at Lipscomb University for 30 years, is one of Babailov's admirers.

"The most outstanding thing is his pencil drawings," she said. "They are beautifully done in a classic tradition."

Babailov has applied his skill to the likeness of world leaders including President Bush, Russian President Vladimir Putin and former South African President Nelson Mandela; American politicians including Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani; and television celebrities Regis Philbin and James Gandolfini ("The Sopranos").

Babailov's portrait of famed Japanese film director Akira Kurosawa benefited the nonprofit Starlight Starbright Foundation, which helps seriously ill children. On his easel right now is a portrait of former football star-turned-commentator Boomer Esiason.

Babailov's process includes an initial sitting, a pencil sketch and several composite studies to judge which composition and background are most suitable to showcase the subject's life, interests or personality.

"It's important to see the person before anything else, before the titles," Babailov said. "To tell the story, that's the vision of the fine artist."

Although he will take many photographs of the subject during the initial sitting, these are used more as a point of reference than a direct guide to the look of the finished painting.

"Photographs capture just one second in time. No one photograph can say everything about one person. A portrait tells the story of the person because an artist can select what goes in there," he said.

The canvas size is then chosen and work on the actual portrait begun.

Although the process is laborious, Babailov said he's never sad to say goodbye to the finished paintings.

"I know it will be in a special place and become part of the history of that company or family. My work makes people happy and that makes me happy."

Babailov is a classically trained artist who works most often in realistic portraiture, but he has also experimented with murals.

As a board member of the International Child Foundation, Babailov is working on a large, multifigurative mural titled "Who has to suffer … and Why?" as a dedication to all young victims of terrorism.

"It's completely based on my imagination, every face. It's not taken from photographs. Before I imagined them in this painting, they didn't exist," he said.

This kind of work gives the artist a mental break from his commissioned portraits — he estimates he's done about 900 in his lifetime — and allows an avenue to sharpen and refresh his skills.

Babailov's family recognized his talent for portraiture and figure drawing early. At 4, he painted his first portrait, that of his artist-composer father, and was sent for formal art training at 8. He received a master's degree in fine art with high distinction from the Surikov Academy of Fine Arts in Moscow.

In 2004, he packed up his New York studio and moved with his wife, Mary, a songwriter, to a home in east Brentwood.

"I moved to Nashville because I liked it," he said, "Geographically, it's in the perfect position to both North and South. It's close to New York and the West Coast — you can get there easily by plane.

"And I love the people. If you want to see true American people, I tell everybody, you've got to come to Nashville." •