Anatoly Ivanovich Shirokov was born on February 25, 1954 in the village of Belaya Ramen in the Vyaznikovsky district of the Vladimir region. From 1974 to 1978 he studied at the Mstera Art Vocational School (named after F.A. Modorov). His teacher of miniature painting was Vladimir Shalaev.
In 1978, he has started to work at the factory "Proletarian Art" of Mstera, reorganized into the Production Cooperative "CENTER OF TRADITIONAL MSTERA MINIATURE" in 1999, where he still works.
From the very beginning of his creative career, Shirokov has been painting author's works. For several years he worked in the youth brigade of the Honored Artist of the RSFSR (Russia) V.F. Nekosov, who had a great influence on the formation of creativity.
Anataliy Shirokov was admitted to the Union of Artists of the Russian Federation in 1990. An artist is a participant of many Art exhibitions - regional, republican, All-Russian, foreign.
Since the 1990s, he has been turning to the study of ancient Russian painting. He copied the Mstera's icons of the late 19th century in the Kazan Cathedral of St. Petersburg. He worked in Zagorsk in 2007 to study the Moscow school of icon painting and temple painting.
Russian Russian folk tales, the history of the Russian state, the theme of the artist's works in the field of lacquer miniature painting: Pushkin's tales and poems, rituals and holidays of the Russian people, Russian folk tales. The artist dedicated a series of miniatures to the holidays of Maslenitsa in Russia of the 19th century. A series of icons and caskets is dedicated to the Saints Peter and Fevronia of Murom: "The Tale of Peter and Fevronia" (Box - 2008), "Saints Peter and Fevronia of Murom" (2009).
Wedding ceremonies in Shirokov's work are captivating with beauty and lyrical sincerity - "Russian wedding", "Village wedding" (1981), "Village wedding" (2013), etc. The landscape reveals the plot, the ubiquitous magpies, chickens, geese, and dogs live in it. Temples and small churches are a mandatory attribute of the village. The bride and groom are always greeted in Russia with bread and salt. All the villagers are involved in the wedding ceremony.
The fairy-tale world of the forest and its inhabitants is depicted in A.Shirokov's miniatures based on Russian folk tales :a casket based on the fairy tale "Twelve Months", "The Tale of Ivan Tsarevich and the Gray Wolf" (2007), "Vasilisa the Beautiful", "Tale of the Sleeping Princess" (2000s) and etc.
Quite often the artists reflect in their works the historical moments of Russia. Shirokov has painted such works as- "The Word about Igor's regiment" (1986), "Moscow is behind us" - painted to the 40th anniversary of the Victory in the World War II, "Field, Russian Field" (1990s), "Mstera's Artist" (2006), "The Tale of the invisible city of Kitezh" (2000s).
In the 2000s, the artist turned to an ancient Russian art. The author has written over 200 icons, among which are "Saints Peter and Fevronia of Murom", "The Holy Guardian Angel", "The Appearance of the Holy Trinity to the Holy Alexander Svirsky", "The Image of the Most Holy Theotokos of Kazan" and many others. Anatoly Shirokov is a master of painting dimensional, generic - family and nominal icons. He is a master of landscape, subtle combinations of coloristic solutions, soft outgoing distances. Anatoly observes the traditions of the Mstera icon painters of the late 19th century. He brings his harmonious vision to the painting of the landscape, the architecture of monasteries and temples, combines the gilding of the ornament with picturesque inserts of the pattern. Soft shading of a colored background is traditional for his painting.
Shirokov was given a rare gift of a master of pictorial drawings.
The artist has been on creative trips - in St. Petersburg and Zagorsk, and in the USA with artists of lacquer crafts with the promotion of Russian artistic lacquers.
Shirokov was participant of many exhibitions- "Mstera - the pearl of Russia" (2012-2013) in Moscow, "The Art of Mstera" - 2013, in the town of Vladimir, "The Art of Msteora" (2013-2014) in the town of Murom.
The artist managed to find his unique style. Anatoly is modest, not conflicted and kind man ,that is why his works are always lyrical and melodious.
For many years Shirokov has been a member of the Art Council of the Production Cooperative in Mstera (Mstera's Factory). For his great contribution to the development of folk arts and crafts he was awarded the Gratitude of the Administration of the Vladimir region on July 22, 2008, the Certificate of Honor of the Administration of the Vladimir region - December 2009, the Certificate for participation in the International Exhibition "Church bells ringing" (2007 and 2008, Moscow).
Original works of Anatoliy Shirokov are kept in famous museums of Russia - Vladimir-Suzdal Museum-Reserve, All-Russia state Museum of decorative and Folk Art in Moscow, Museum of Slavic Mythology -in the town of Tomsk, Mstera'a Art Museum.