Photo courtesy of Steven Maksin.
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From brighton beach to the Metropolitan museum
Growing up in Kiev, Ukraine, in the waning days of the Soviet Union, world-class institutions like the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Art Institute of Chicago were a world away for Steven Maksin—then known as Vsevolod. The closest he got to collecting was trading Russian trinkets with visiting American tourists.
All of this began to change after Maksin emigrated to the United States in 1989, moving to Brighton Beach, a Russian-American stronghold in Brooklyn where he still maintains a residence. Following a name change to Steven and early studies at Kingsborough Community College, Maksin earned a degree in accounting at the Stern School of Business at New York University and then became an attorney as well.
After establishing a career as a real estate investor, he turned to a private passion: art collecting. Today, Steven Maksin’s collection ranges from Raphael and Dali to his special interest, antique highly decorated and engraved firearms.
When it comes to acquisitions, Maksin’s desire is for pieces that tell a story, whether it is from the age of kings in France, the Old West, or the Italian Renaissance. His professional work now is to find value in failing real estate properties and then turning them around into successful projects. He similarly looks for value and beauty in long-hidden masterpieces.
“I only buy things that were not seen in the past,” he says. “More important than making money is to make sure they are seen by the public.”
“One group of collectors likes to buy pieces and keep them and enjoy themselves in castles and penthouses,” Maksin adds. “We are custodians and it makes the world a better place.”
“America is a land of freedom and possibilities,” he adds. “I’ve been fortunate and this is my way of giving back.”
The art of provenance research
Indeed, behind Maksin’s acquisitions is the desire to be a donor, unlocking works once hidden from public view in private collections so they can now be seen by visitors to well-known museums. What is more, his legal and accounting expertise has helped him navigate the provenance of centuries-old pieces.
“When you go through the provenance, it can be written down centuries ago, so you need real research skills,” he says. “As a tax lawyer, I am used to delving into the details. Not everything is on the Internet – I’m used to spending hours in the library,” Maksin says. He also works closely with art historians, and some of the archives are in foreign languages.
One such unusual work is a pair of dueling pistols by Gastinne-Renette, dated 1855. After acquiring it in 2024, he soon lent them to the Art Institute of Chicago.
Until Maksin stepped up, the museum had precious few French firearms of note. These firearms represent an example of ‘art on steel,’ and Maksin’s hope is these lent works promote new appreciation for pieces little-known among the general public.
Firearms as fine art
Earlier, Maksin also acquired four 19th century Winchester rifles, an icon of the Old West, engraved with gold. Once kept in private vaults, these gleaming pieces were in pristine condition. Now they are brilliant, loaned works at the Met, where he is a member of the Negroli Society, an elite group of collectors who support the Department of Arms and Armor.
Maksin is also a member of the Department’s Visiting Committee, where he partnered with legendary collector Ronald Lauder and Alejandro Santo Domingo to acquire the gold-inlaid Smith & Wesson revolver.
“The pistol is one of the finest Smith & Wesson firearms to come to market in twenty years and may be considered one of the most beautifully embellished American firearms from the second half of the nineteenth century,” says John Byck, the Marcia F. and Jan T. Vilcek Curator at the Met.
Lauder is one of the leading American art collectors of his generation, and the partnership underscored Maksin’s ascension from a humble immigrant to the top echelon of the art world at the Met.
“I heard about cowboys growing up in the Soviet Union but these kinds of firearms were out of reach, out of sight,” Maksin says. Besides the story of the Old West, what attracted him to these items?
“They represent freedom of action, the ability to be free from government and open spaces.”
It is a long way from the Wild West to the Italian Renaissance, but perhaps the crown jewel in Maksin’s collection is Titian’s Venus and Cupid. This painting is a variation of the Titian’s painting known as Sacred and Profane Love housed in Rome’s Galleria Borghese. The original painting depicts two women—one dressed, one nude—seated by a sarcophagus-turned-fountain with Cupid, often interpreted as allegories of earthly and heavenly love. The work is considered one of Titian’s masterpieces, since it represents a high point of early Renaissance art, showcasing Titian’s mastery of color and complex allegorical storytelling. Such masterpieces influenced other artistic giants like Rubens and Caravaggio.
Old masters and new discoveries
Speaking of other, later artists, notable acquisitions by Maksin include Rococo masters Giambattista Pittoni and surrealist masters like Salvador Dali.
He also has amassed a number of paintings made by Eastern European masters like Tetiana Nylivna Yablonska who was a well known Soviet Ukrainian artist; German Gold, and Alexander Roitburd. Echoing Maksin’s success in seeing new possibilities in once overlooked malls, three works held by Maksin in a Las Vegas vault were identified by art historians in 2024 as belonging to Pittoni, a 17th century Venetian master.
When Maksin bought them at an auction in Rome, an expert said they might be by Pittoni, but the provenance was uncertain.
“It takes patience — provenance takes time, it is a journey across centuries,” Maksin notes. “And historians must have an expert eye to see if a particular painting was a unique work by a special artist. I was very excited to know I had a Pittoni in my collection — these are not common finds.”
“Old Masters represented part of history, and I realized I could become part of that by learning about them, including the Bible and stories of freedom,” Maksin says.
One theme he favors is the triumph of good over evil. An example is a drawing by Raphael, which Maksin owns, depicting St. George slaying the dragon — the original painting of which is in the National Gallery in Washington.
Moving quickly, Maksin made several leading paintings available for a landmark exhibition in 2025 in Naples. Showing these works in their native land – Italy – represents the closing of a circle and was much appreciated by local critics and art enthusiasts.
The range of Maksin’s vision extends to the 20th Century, a reflection of his appreciation for Salvador Dali, the renowned surrealist. Maksin lent Dali’s painting titled Portrait of Mrs. Luther Greene to the Espace Lympia museum in Nice, France. It is unusual in Dali’s oeuvre for being a realist portrait, not a strictly surrealist work.
“This shows he is a great painter, and it is very unusual in terms of his style,” Maksin notes. “Some argue it is his best portrait work ever and it is one of a kind.”
New York, Chicago, Venice, Nice, Naples — these are a long way from his hometown of Kiev. But Maksin still maintains the home in Brighton Beach, connecting him to his beginnings in the United States.
“I’ve been very blessed to be in the United States,” he says. “I always remember that.”
Real estate and private equity deals still take up most of his time, with deals for malls across the country.
But Maksin’s best moments are contemplating the works in his collection and scouting the landscape for new acquisitions. Summing up his passion for art, he says, “it gives me a chance to use a time machine and go back.”
