Anatoly Petrovich Zhandarmov was born on March 30, 1912 in Moscow in the family
of a musician. His father was a graduate of the Moscow Conservatory, who worked
in the orchestra of the Operetta Theatre. Independently, his grandfather learned
how to play wind instruments and took part in amateur concerts at the Moscow
Zoological Garden. He took his grandson to his performances. Therefore, even in
his early childhood Anatoly Petrovich Zhandarmov got himself acquainted with
the zoo. His grandfather and father taught him to play the violin from a young
age, but he showed more interest in drawing, and at the age of 16 he became
interested in photography.
After
school, he graduated from the Higher Cameraman Courses of the All-Russian State
University of Cinematography (VGIK). Then he began to work as an assistant camera
and later as a camera operator at the Mosnauchfilm film studio (since 1967 -
Tsentrnauchfilm), where films about science and technology were shot for the
mass audience using micro and macro filming. There the first popular science
film magazine for children “I Want to Know Everything” (1957) and the
Organization of Associations of Geographical Films (1959) were created.
In December
1941, Anatoly Petrovich Zhandarmov was drafted into the army. During the Great
Patriotic War he fought on the Southwestern Front and had been in Romania when
it finished. In October 1945, Zhandarmov returned to Moscow and continued to
work at the «Mosnauchfilm» film studio.
In 1946,
Zhandarmov began photographing animals in the Moscow Zoo. During this time, he started
publishing his photographs and camera work under the pseudonym of An. Anzhanov.
From 1950 to 1961 Anatoly Petrovich was a staff photographer of the zoo. Here
he met A.F. Kohts, the director of the Darwin Museum, and his wife N.N. Ladygina-Kohts.
Alexander Kohts invited Anatoly Petrovich to the film studio of the Darwin
Museum.
From 1947
to 1990, A.P. Zhandarmov constantly collaborated with the State Darwin Museum as
a photographer and cameraman.
In the
1970s Anatoly Petrovich felt the need to share his long-term knowledge in the
field of photography and camera work. He became the head of the «Oko» film
studio of the club of the Joint Committee of Trade Union Organizations of the
Ministry of Finance of the USSR, for which he was noted with numerous gratitude
and awards.
A.P.
Zhandarmov died on November 30, 1993.