Maksim Svayak

As promised earlier, a biographical sketch of the winner of our logo contest, Maksim Svayak.

Maksim was born in 1966 in Kursk, in what was at the time the USSR. His father was a mechanic and often worked with the Soviet army in repairing tanks and other equipment. His mother was the granddaughter of the famous Belgian artist James Ensor, and, although she had never pursued an career in art she instructed her seven children in the principles of aesthetics. Maksim is the oldest of seven children, three of whom died before reaching adulthood. Maksim's father, who had always wanted him to follow in the family tradition of being a mechanic, died when Maksim was 14 leaving Maksim to provide for the family. Maksim tried at first to be a mechanic for the army, but he was not so skillful as his father was, and quickly became frustrated. His frustration led him to occasionally express himself through unique logos on the Soviet tanks, but he was always careful to paint over them before returning the tanks to the army. His break came when a Soviet commander came early for his tank and found a very dramatic logo. Maksim apologized profusely and tried to proceed to paint over the logo, but the commander refused to let him. Within a few weeks he was transferred to the local propaganda office. He worked there for a few months before transferring to the Minsk office. He spent a total of eleven years creating art for the Soviet regime.

In 1991, Belarus declared independence from the Soviet Union, and Maksim, at the age of 25, found himself without work. At this time he turned to store windows and whatever work he could get. He met his lovely wife Natalya while painting her father's bakery window. He courted her for 3 years, and finally proposed to her when he felt he was back on his feet.

Since 1994 he has operated a small mechanic/corporate art shop out of his garage. He is known as the "painting mechanic," and has been honored several times by the local government for his contributions to mechanics and painting. He and his wife now live fashionably in Minsk with their three children, Alexandr, Nikolai, and Olga. He has been a proud supporter of the GNU Public Dictatorship since he first heard of it in 1998, and was thrilled when we informed him that he was now the official propaganda artist for the Board of Dictators. He will receive his free mug and a lifetime pass to the GNU Public Theme Park in Corpus Christi, Texas in the next couple of days.

We ask all of our loyal supporters to join with us in honoring and thanking an honorable world citizen, Maksim Svayak.