“We are sadly informing that today, on July 20, 2020, Viktor Aleksandrovich Chizhikov, People's Artist of Russia, one of the most famous artists of the national children's book, passed away. Viktor Aleksandrovich was 84 years old, ”AST said in a statement.
Chizhikov created drawings for the publishing houses "Kid", "Children's Literature", magazines "Murzilka", "Funny Pictures" and others.
“It is symbolic that the artist left us precisely in those days when many remember the 1980 Olympics. The image of the Olympic Bear, created by Viktor Aleksandrovich, once touched the hearts of millions of people, ”the publication noted.
On July 19, 1980, the XXII Summer Olympic Games opened in Moscow. Millions of people around the world remember how at the close of the Games their talisman - an Olympic bear - ascended into the sky.