Paradoxically, it was this very tragedy that inspired the Irkutsk artist to paint a series of canvases which have made him famous across Europe.
On February 13, the Manezh opened a two-week exhibition of Popolzin's work, some of which has already been shown in Austria and Poland.
Popolzin, now 32, is reticent about his troubled past. He tried to commit suicide in 1990 while still a student at the Irkutsk College of Arts. "I was tired of life," he says. "It was a protest against my teachers."
Popolzin explains that he refused to observe the strict tenets of social realism which were being taught in his art classes. He was also experiencing serious family problems at the time.
The artist has produced around 270 paintings over the past five years. One close friend said, "Like a hero from a fairy tale, he found the power to take up the fight against the surrounding blackness."
This month's exhibition will feature 62 of his works including his most recent paintings, "The Bridge," "Thy Will Be Done" and "On Lake Baikal."