Nikolai (Mykola/Nikolay) Havrylovych Shmatko (17 August 1943 – 15 September 2020) was a Ukrainian sculptor and painter widely known as the “King of Marble.” His legacy rests on extraordinary technical mastery of marble, prolific independent output, and a body of work that ranges from monumental religious sculpture to provocative figurative and political pieces.
Life and Path to Sculpture
Born in Krasnohorivka in the Donetsk region, Shmatko came to sculpture relatively late. He worked as a firefighter and in other trades before beginning to carve at age 33 (around 1976–1977). He was largely self-directed, drawing inspiration from European classical traditions. He worked primarily in Ural and Italian marble, creating more than 750 monuments, reliefs, busts, and sculptures and roughly 500 paintings and graphic works—almost entirely without sustained government or major institutional sponsorship.
He collaborated closely with his sons Andrey and Rafael (the latter active on X as @rafshmatko). The family gallery, “Shmatko & Sons,” at various times held over 70–80 marble sculptures plus hundreds of paintings and architectural designs, forming one of the largest single-artist marble collections in Ukraine.
Shmatko’s life was marked by frequent moves (Bolgrad, Krasnyi Luch, Sloviansk, Luhansk, Mukachevo, and finally Pereiaslav) and periods of real hardship. He spent years working and living in improvised or basement spaces. He died of cancer on 15 September 2020 in a school basement in Pereiaslav, Kyiv Oblast, where the family was storing the collection, in the arms of his sons.
Major Works and Themes
Shmatko’s sculpture is figurative and classical in spirit, with a strong emphasis on the expressive potential of marble. Key categories include:
• Religious and spiritual works
His most publicly significant commission is the monumental Sviatohorska Blessed Virgin (Theotokos “Hegumenia,” 2004) for the Sviato-Uspenskyi Sviatohorskyi Monastery (Svyatogorsk Lavra) in Donetsk Oblast. The 4.2-meter statue was carved from two 40-ton blocks of Ural marble. For this work he received the Order of Nestor the Chronicler (III class) from Metropolitan Volodymyr (Sabodan) of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. He also created a marble Crucifixion for the Transfiguration Church in Keleberda, Poltava region, and other sacred pieces.
• Philosophical and symbolic pieces
Adoration of the Disk (or Worship to the Sun Disk), shown at the Florence Biennale, is frequently cited. Shmatko spoke of it as revealing a divine face emerging from the stone.
• Political and portrait sculpture
He produced busts and figurative works of Ukrainian and international figures, including Yulia Tymoshenko (Ukrainian Aurora—a controversial near-nude marble figure that attracted media attention), Viktor Yanukovych, Viktor Yushchenko, Vladimir Zelensky, Donald Trump, Melania Trump, Bill Gates, and others. These works often carried explicit political or prophetic commentary from the artist.
• Figurative and erotic works
A substantial portion of his oeuvre consists of nudes, torsos, and intimate compositions executed with classical technical skill. Some of these are sexually explicit.
He also explored architecture (including unconventional designs) and maintained an active painting practice.
Recognition
• 2004: Order of Nestor the Chronicler for the Svyatogorsk Virgin.
• 2007: Medal “Lorenzo il Magnifico” (4th place / ex aequo in sculpture and installation) at the Florence Biennale—the first Ukrainian artist recognized in this way at the event. Works exhibited included Luhansk, a Bill Gates bust, and Adoration of the Disk.
• 2000: Appointed professor at the Moscow Institute of World Civilizations.
• Multiple exhibitions in Ukraine (Kyiv, Odessa, Donetsk, Luhansk, Sloviansk, Bolgrad) and abroad.
Legacy
Shmatko’s sculptural legacy is that of a highly skilled, independent classical carver who produced a large body of work under difficult conditions. His religious commissions, especially the Svyatogorsk Virgin, have lasting public presence. His political and figurative pieces reflect a personal engagement with contemporary events and the human form. The family gallery and the efforts of his son Rafael to preserve and publicize the collection continue to keep the work visible.
He remains known among admirers for both technical excellence in marble and a mystical streak—viewing sculpture as a medium through which higher realities could appear in stone. His life story of late vocation, prolific solitary creation, and material hardship adds a powerful human dimension to the artistic achievement.
Nikolai Shmatko’s marble carving techniques combined classical European methods with intense personal discipline, careful material selection, and a mystical sense that forms could “appear” from within the stone. He earned the nickname “King of Marble” through sheer volume of high-quality work produced largely by hand, often under difficult conditions.
Starting Point and Approach
Shmatko began carving at age 33 with no formal sculpture training. His first commission was a tombstone bas-relief. He later described the knowledge of tools and process as suddenly “opening” to him, as if remembered rather than learned. From that point he worked 12–16 hours a day, treating the physical labor of marble as the core of his practice. Sketching and making plaster models he regarded as relative rest.
His sons Andrey and Rafael regularly assisted with the heavy physical stages of large works.
Standard Working Sequence
Shmatko followed a traditional subtractive process adapted to his own scale and independence:
1. Design and maquette
He first created sketches, then a detailed plaster (gypsum) model. This stage clarified proportions and composition before any stone was cut.
2. Material selection
He insisted on choosing blocks himself. He preferred Ural (especially Koelga) marble and occasionally Italian Carrara. When he visited a quarry, operations would sometimes pause so he could examine blocks for cracks or internal flaws. He purchased stone at his own expense and valued clean, high-quality material.
3. Roughing out and direct carving
He worked directly into solid blocks—often very large ones. Examples include:
• A full figure of ballerina Anastasia Volochkova from a 3-ton block.
• The 4.2-meter Sviatohorska Blessed Virgin carved from two 40-ton Ural blocks.
• Ambitious (unrealized in marble) multi-figure projects planned for single blocks of 100 tons or more, such as Christ Appearing to the Apostles.
He emphasized carving from the solid mass rather than assembling pieces, and he took pride in works finished without visible joints.
4. Refinement and finishing
After the major mass was removed, he refined forms, anatomy, drapery, and surface detail using traditional chisels, points, and abrasives. Contemporary accounts praise the technical precision that allowed marble to take on the appearance of softer materials—flesh, fabric, or flowing water—through careful control of light reflection and surface modeling.
Technical Character and Scale
Shmatko’s technique was classical in orientation: progressive reduction from rough form to fine detail, with attention to anatomy, movement, and the optical properties of marble. What distinguished him was the combination of:
• Willingness to tackle monumental blocks without industrial workshop support.
• Long, sustained daily labor.
• An almost intimate relationship with the stone—he spoke of discovering faces and figures already latent in the material (most famously the divine face that “appeared” on the underside of the disk in Adoration of the Disk / Worship to the Sun Disk).
He did not rely on modern CNC or robotic methods; his practice remained hand-driven and workshop-based, even for works of several tons.
Philosophical Dimension of the Technique
Shmatko often described carving in revelatory rather than purely constructive terms. The stone was not merely a medium to be imposed upon; forms could emerge through attentive work, as if the marble already contained them. This attitude aligned with his broader mystical outlook and contributed to the spiritual intensity of both his religious commissions and certain figurative pieces.
In summary, Shmatko’s marble technique rested on classical subtractive principles, rigorous personal selection of stone, extreme physical endurance, family collaboration on large projects, and a conviction that the carver’s role was partly to reveal what the material already held. The result was a large body of technically accomplished figurative and monumental sculpture produced under conditions of limited resources and institutional support.
Koelga (Koelgin / Коелга) marble is a high-quality white calcite marble from the Koelga deposit in Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia (Urals). It is one of Russia’s largest and most important white marble deposits and was a preferred material for sculptor Nikolai Shmatko.
Origin and Geology
• Location: Village of Koelga, Etkulsky District, Chelyabinsk Oblast.
• Deposit: One of the largest white marble deposits in the world (reserves estimated around 19 million m³). Quarries reach depths of ~75–130 m.
• Mining: Open-pit, ongoing since 1925. Annual block production historically around 45–55 thousand m³.
• Composition: Nearly pure calcite marble (CaCO₃ ≈ 98.96–99.46%). Minor impurities include SiO₂ (0.19–0.56%), MgO (0.20–0.27%), Fe₂O₃, Al₂O₃, and traces of quartz, pyrite, or hematite (usually <1%). Minimal dolomitization.
Appearance
• Color: Predominantly white to light gray or milky-white, often with a subtle bluish or yellowish cast. Gray veins, spots, or inclusions are common; some blocks show rusty or beige accents.
• Structure: Fine- to medium-grained (average calcite grain size ~0.4 mm), granoblastic texture. Massive and relatively homogeneous.
• Translucency: Moderate (3–20 mm light penetration, higher in lighter varieties).
• Decorative rating: Class II (decorative stone); frequently compared to Italian Bianco Carrara, though generally less translucent.
It is dense, has low porosity, and polishes to a high mirror finish. It cuts well in all directions and is relatively easy to work for a marble of this purity.
Working Characteristics (Relevant to Sculpture)
• Excellent workability: Saws cleanly, carves responsively, and takes fine detail.
• Good polishability to a high sheen.
• Suitable for both indoor and outdoor use due to low water absorption and solid frost resistance.
• Preferred by carvers (including Shmatko) for large blocks and figurative work because of its relative homogeneity and response to traditional chisels and abrasives.
Uses
• Architecture and cladding (e.g., elements of the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, government buildings, metro stations in Moscow and elsewhere).
• Sculpture and monuments.
• Interior finishes (floors, stairs, columns, fireplaces) and exterior cladding in moderate-traffic areas.
• Also processed into micro-marble powders for industrial fillers.
Comparison Notes
Often positioned as a more affordable, weather-resistant alternative or counterpart to Carrara white marbles. It generally offers better frost resistance for outdoor applications in colder climates than some softer Italian whites, though pure white, highly translucent Carrara varieties may still be preferred for the most refined sculptural translucency.
In short, Koelga marble is a pure, dense, fine- to medium-grained white calcite marble valued for its workability, polish, durability, and large available block sizes—qualities that made it attractive for monumental sculpture and architectural use.
Nikolai Shmatko’s marble busts of Donald Trump and Melania Trump form a distinctive pair of works from 2016–2018. They reflect both his classical figurative technique and his strongly personal, visionary interpretation of the couple.
Bust of Donald Trump
Shmatko began work on the Trump bust in late 2015 / early 2016, well before the U.S. election. He completed a plaster version by February 2016 and then carved the final piece in Carrara marble—the same Italian stone Michelangelo used for the David. He chose Carrara deliberately for its historical prestige and fine quality, stating that it was the material used to immortalize great figures.
He presented the finished bust as “Donald Trump, the US President,” treating the election outcome as already settled. In his own words:
“I just looked at his face, and the heavenly powers told me that he – Donald Trump – would become the President of the USA.”
He described the sculpture as “evidence of his participation in the management of the United States of America.” Shmatko repeatedly called Trump a global-scale reformer and compared him directly to the Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaten, who introduced radical religious and cultural changes roughly 3,400 years earlier. In videos and statements he said Trump possessed the same transformative energy and that the world would improve under such a figure.
The bust was intended as a gift rather than a commercial piece. Shmatko offered to bring his entire gallery to the United States for a multi-state exhibition in support of Trump, with proceeds directed toward “the development of the human intellect.” The work remained in the family collection (later stored under difficult conditions in Pereiaslav) and has been referenced by his son Rafael as one of the sculptor’s significant late pieces.
Bust of Melania Trump
Shmatko created the companion bust of Melania around 2017–early 2018, carving it from snow-white Greek marble. He explicitly compared her beauty and presence to Queen Nefertiti, the iconic consort of Akhenaten. In his view, Melania represented classical elegance and provided essential support that helped Trump reach the presidency.
He described her as “a charismatic person” whose “striking beauty can be compared to that of Nefertiti” and as “a symbol of classical antiquity and a standard of beauty.” The bust was meant to capture a “historically correct” image for posterity. After limited success with an online fundraiser for the marble, Shmatko purchased the stone at his own expense and completed the work near the first anniversary of the inauguration. Videos from the gallery show the finished marble piece and the sculptor’s commentary linking Melania’s role to the larger historical parallel with the Amarna period.
The Akhenaten–Trump Painting
Shmatko’s comparison of Trump to Akhenaten was not limited to words. You noted that you posted on your blog a painting by him that depicts King Akhenaten handing President Trump a key. This work fits the pattern of Shmatko’s mystical and prophetic imagery. He often spoke of forms or insights “appearing” to him (as with faces emerging from marble or divine guidance in choosing subjects). The painting visualizes the transfer of a reforming mandate across millennia—Akhenaten as the ancient innovator passing a symbolic key of transformation to Trump. It aligns with the same visionary framework that led Shmatko to carve the busts years before Trump’s first term and to treat the election outcome as predetermined.
These pieces stand out in Shmatko’s late oeuvre because they combine classical marble technique (Carrara for Trump, Greek marble for Melania) with an explicit prophetic and historical-mythic narrative. They were created under the same personal and material constraints that marked much of his career, yet they remain among the works most closely associated with his public statements about destiny, reform, and the emergence of form from stone.
Nikolai Shmatko’s painting of King Akhenaten handing President Trump a key is a symbolic, visionary work that extends the same prophetic framework he applied to the marble busts.
Context and Concept
Shmatko repeatedly compared Donald Trump to the Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaten (Amenhotep IV, r. ca. 1353–1336 BCE). In videos and statements from 2016, he described Trump as a reformer on the scale of Akhenaten, who overturned Egypt’s traditional polytheistic religion in favor of the Aten (the sun disk) and reshaped art, architecture, and the capital itself. Shmatko saw parallel transformative energy in Trump: a figure who would disrupt established orders and initiate a new era. He paired this with the comparison of Melania Trump to Nefertiti, Akhenaten’s queen and an enduring ideal of classical beauty.
The painting visualizes that historical parallel as a direct transmission of authority. Akhenaten is shown presenting a key to Trump—a clear symbol of entrusting power, mandate, or a new historical phase. This fits Shmatko’s broader mystical approach to art, in which forms and insights “appear” (whether emerging from marble or received as divine guidance). He spoke of looking at Trump’s face and receiving confirmation from “heavenly powers” that Trump would become president; the painting translates that sense of destiny into an explicit mythic scene spanning millennia.
Documentation and Visibility
The work is not widely catalogued in public museum or commercial sources in the same way as the marble busts. Its primary documentation comes through your blog (Travelogue for the Universe), where you posted it, and through related discussions with the Shmatko family (particularly Rafael). In your X posts you have referred to it as the “symbolic Akhenaton power key vision,” linking it directly to the busts and to Shmatko’s early prediction of Trump’s election. This places the painting within the same personal, prophetic strand of his late work that also produced the Carrara-marble Trump bust and the Greek-marble Melania bust.
Significance in Shmatko’s Oeuvre
Like the busts, the painting combines classical historical reference with contemporary political intuition. Shmatko treated Trump not merely as a politician but as a world-historical actor whose role had been “prepared.” The key-handing scene makes that claim visible: the ancient reformer passes the instrument of change to the modern one. It is consistent with Shmatko’s lifelong interest in spiritual and metaphysical themes (visible also in works such as Worship to the Sun Disk and his religious sculptures) and with his practice of working from an inner conviction that certain forms or destinies already existed to be revealed.
In short, the Akhenaten–Trump painting functions as the pictorial counterpart to the marble busts—another expression of Shmatko’s belief that Trump embodied a rare, reforming force, continuous with the most radical transformations of the ancient world.
