Abstract
It was found that within the biased art of social realism, which reflected the doctrine of the totalitarian system, Ukrainian painting was distinguished by a variety of artistic experiments. It is shown that artists, regardless of the circumstances, sought to develop an artistic form, but because of the ideology of the Soviet state, conventional painting was formed, in which the «heroics» and «enthusiasm» of the era were decisive. The author comes to a conclusion that, despite various obstacles, the artists tended to develop the artistic form. However, due to ideological conventions of the Soviet state, there existed the situation when free work was literally impossible. Thus, conventionalism for many was the form of creative realization that secured them from total censorship, repressions, and oblivion. During the existence of the Soviet Union the art critics and historian gave a positive account of the role of the party and its leaders for development of art. Yet, modern views of the socialist realism legacy paint completely different picture, telling the true story of conventional painting and art in general.