Ernest Neizvestny; who is one of the dissident artists in post-Soviet realism after the Stalin regime, is an artist attracting attention with an interesting life story. Artist; has left an indelible mark on art history with a uniqe approach which is described as "scandal" to art in era between 60s and 70s opposite to attitude to the rules and regulations of official Soviet ideology admiting 'Art is for society'. Neizvestny, hallmarked the period with his 'liberal-leaning' works against to both the academy's narrow thinking and government policy.
The statement “Here comes the man who can kill himself at any moment” that is mentioned in Manej exhibition which is a milestone of Neizvestny’ life and performed during Khrushchev's rule (1954-1964) constitutes the main subject of this study. In this article, the artist's life, art works and artistic conception, will been interpreted by taking the essence of the philosophy that lies in the center of the aforementioned words. Prof. In this study some of Dr. E. Neizvestny's important works which attract attention with expressive and plastic features and performed when he has been deported from the country (1976) and after his subsequent return to the country after 1990 will be analyzed. In this analysis, works of "Mask of Sorrow" and "Tree of Life" will be highlighted in particular due to that they contain important traces of the artist's personal life and in terms of reflecting the overall situation in the USSR

Keywords: Ernest Neizvestny, Soviet Realism, Russia, America, "Mask of Sorrow," "Tree of Life