The first comprehensive monograph on this key figure in Russian art scene. Though his characters and models are at a substantial distance historically, they exhibit true, authentic passions common to all of us humans, exemplify the evolution of our perception of good, evil, beauty and ugliness and illustrate the transformation of buffoonery and irony into grotesque. In all likelihood, this is what makes for one of the key innovations in Alexander Rukavishnikov’s artistic method and creative vision of the world.