Honored artist of Russia, member of the Soviet Union of Artists (1953), painter, graphic Illustrator and sculptor. In 1940 he graduated from the Gorky art school. In 1941 he became a military cartographer and later worked for a front-line newspaper. He studied at the Surikov Moscow state art Institute (1946-1951). Rastorguev was exhibited a lot at Moscow, Russian, all-Union and international exhibitions. He is also a member of the famous "Group of 16”. Since The 1960s Rastorguev begins a close collaboration with the magazine" Youth", where he works as an Illustrator. He travels a lot around the country: the Urals, Bratskaya HPP, the far East, the North. The result of these trips were interesting works created by the artist. In the 1960s Rastorguyev was fascinated by the "severe style", which became only an episode in his work. In 1970s a period of appeal to the origins of folk art began, which led him to the creation of works-poetic fantasies. The source of inspiration for the artist was his small homeland - Gorodets on the Volga. The cycle "Gorodetsky fantasies" is original, touchingly naive and charming.
