Dubasov Ivan Ivanovich

Ivan Ivanovich Dubasov was a Soviet painter and engraver, chief artist of Goznak (1932-1971), Honored Artist of the RSFSR (1959).

Years of life: November 30, 1897, Odintsovo — March 15, 1988, Moscow

The path to the profession

Study. In 1908, he entered the Imperial Stroganov College (now the S. G. Stroganov Academy), initially chose the specialty of enamel. In 1913, he received an Easter Diploma for illustrating the Gospel in the Old Russian style; in 1915, he was awarded the title of "learned draughtsman" (which gave him the right to teach).

The war years. In 1916, he volunteered, served on the Western and Romanian fronts, suffered typhus. During the Civil War, he was engaged in cultural and educational work in the Red Army.

Start in Goznak. In 1922, he won the People's Commissariat of Photography competition for a sketch of a postage stamp for the 5th anniversary of the October Revolution. After that, he was invited to Goznak. He worked his way up from an engraver to a chief artist.

What is famous for

The design of Soviet money. Dubasov designed sketches and originals of most Soviet banknotes from the mid‑1920s to the 1970s (including 1937 gold coins with a portrait of Lenin, 1938 rubles with figures of a miner, a Red Army soldier and a pilot). He even came up with a way to "sign" the work: he put his initials "ID" and the date on the projects.

Coat of arms of the USSR. In 1923, it was Dubasov who finalized and actually created the final version of the coat of arms: he proposed placing slogans on the coils of the ribbon around the ears and "winding" the ends of the ribbon beyond the globe — this made it easy to change the number of ribbons during the expansion of the Union.

Postage stamps, awards, and bonds. He created sketches of stamps (including those dedicated to the 800th anniversary of Moscow), government bonds, and certificates of honor.

Cosmic symbols. He participated in the development of pennants that Soviet spacecraft delivered to the Moon and Venus.

Magazine graphics. In the 1920s, he collaborated with the publications "Peasant Woman", "Lapot", "Pioneer", etc., designed covers and made hundreds of illustrations.

Recognition and features of heritage

Dubasov was professionally called the "patriarch of the money business." At the same time, due to the specifics of Goznak, his name remained little known to the general public for a long time: the work was carried out in secrecy, and the sketches were often anonymous. It was only later that researchers and museum staff restored the scale of his contribution.