Birch

Alexey Mikhailovich Gritsay was a Soviet painter, People's Artist of the RSFSR (1963), and full member of the Academy of Arts of the USSR (1964). He studied at the Leningrad Academy of Arts (1932–1939) under I. I. Brodsky and V. N. Yakovlev. He taught at the Surikov Moscow Art Institute (becoming a professor in 1966). In his landscapes, he developed the traditions of the Russian realistic school of the second half of the 19th century. He also painted industrial scenes and portraits. He was a two-time recipient of the USSR State Prize (1951, 1952) and was awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, 2nd class.