Since time immemorial, Russia has been famous for its folk crafts. Craft is a special kind of creativity. Things that people used every day in their ordinary lives were decorated by painters as real works of art. In addition to painting, there were other types of art:

• Lace making;
• Pottery;
• Blacksmithing skill;
• Clay and wooden toys.

Each folk craft was sustained in its own individual style, which appeared due to the history of a particular region, its customs and traditions. At the same time, a single thread runs through all folk crafts, connecting all the peoples of our country for many generations. We will talk about the most famous folk crafts in Russia.

Amazing illustrations dedicated to Russian crafts and folk crafts are created by a contemporary artist Mila Losenko.

Khokhloma

Artist: Mila Losenko

Russian folk craft Khokhloma has been counting its history since the 17th century. It originated in the village of Khokhloma, which was located on the territory of the former Semenovsky district of the Nizhny Novgorod province. The village was famous for the fact that there were many monasteries on its territory. For example, Sharpansky and Olenevsky sketes. At the monasteries there were workshops where they were engaged in the manufacture of wooden utensils. This dish had to be painted later. Khokhloma craftsmen used juicy bright colors for this: black, red, golden, sometimes green. The golden color is made in an interesting way:

1. Silver tin powder is placed on the dishes.
2. It is varnished.
3. Three or four times processed in the oven.

Thus, this unique golden hue is formed.

gzhel

Artist: Mila Losenko

Gzhel refers to products made of ceramics. Ceramics and porcelain have been produced in the town of the same name since the 17th century. This city was also considered the center of the life of the Old Believers, but the heyday of Gzhel, as one of the most famous folk crafts in Russia, fell on the time of the existence of the M.S. Kuznetsov" in the late XIX - early XX century. White and blue became the main colors of Gzhel, but private craftsmen allowed themselves some liberties. For example, they could add gold. Famous artists became classics of Gzhel painting:

• Azarova,
• Denisov,
• Neplyuev,
• Fedorovskaya,
• Oleinikov,
• Tsaregorodtsev,
• Podgornaya,
• Garanin,
• Simonov.

Their work is known all over the world.

Obvinsk painting

Artist: Mila Losenko

Obvinskaya painting is the arts and crafts of the Urals. The most original folk craft of the Kama region fell in love with those who love bright colors and complex ornaments. Obvinsky painting was used to decorate both dishes and toys, but mostly it was placed on spinning wheels. The main motif of the Obvinsk painting was an eight-pointed flower resembling a star. This is the hallmark of the painters of the Vygoretsky hostel. The time and exact place of origin of the scenic craft on the Obva River is not known. The earliest dated spinning wheels date back to the 70s of the 19th century.

Guslitskaya painting

Artist: Mila Losenko

Guslitskaya painting among all the folk crafts of Russia is often called "exclusive", because it was not used anywhere, except for the region in which it appeared. Guslitsy are located in the southeast of the Moscow region, they once waited here, persecuted Old Believers, fleeing to other places after the church schism. The Old Believers were engaged in Guslitskaya painting, but its origin goes back to Byzantine ornaments. As a rule, manuscripts and the first printed editions were decorated with it. Miniatures made with Guslitsky painting were always prepared only by hand.

Artist: Mila Losenko

In the era of Peter I in Russia, the first attempts to organize a centralized production of artistic ceramics appeared. It was possible to put it on stream only in the middle of the 18th century.

For the first time in Russia in 1747, the Moscow merchant Afanasy Grebenshchikov mastered the production of thin majolica. Majolica products of a bluish surface with a traditional blue painting brought glory to this dish. The shape of the utensils was reminiscent of similar Baroque silverware. Gzhel majolica is one of the brightest examples of Russian artistic ceramics.

Rakul painting

Artist: Mila Losenko

Rakul painting originated in the Krasnoborsk Territory of the Arkhangelsk Region. The village of Ulyanovsk became the center of the fishery. Key roles in the painting were given to golden-ocher and black colors, but green and dark red are also present. Rakul painting is distinguished by a large ornament in the form of leaves, bushes and birds, usually magpies and chickens. The craft originated in the middle of the 19th century in the Vityazev family, but in the 1930s it experienced a severe crisis and almost disappeared.

Onega painting

Artist: Mila Losenko

Onega or Olonets painting originated near the lower reaches of the Onega River. Blue, green and red tones usually add up to an unusual floral bouquet, apples and birds. Distaffs and other household utensils were decorated with Onega painting. Details were painted in large, unconstrained bold strokes. The type of painting appeared in the 18th century.

Lipetsk painting

Artist: Mila Losenko

Lipetsk painting is a folk craft of Russia from the Lipetsk region. The craft originated in the 18th century and traditionally referred to dishes: plates, spoons, bowls were made by hand from linden wood, which grows especially well in these places. Special technology requires exactly 72 days for the manufacture of any product, each of which, according to the rules, is signed by hand.

The painting style is inspired by Yelets lace motifs. In the Lipetsk painting, images of butterflies, birds, fish, representatives of the flora and fauna of the South Russian nature, as well as fabulous animals are often found. The nature of the ornament is called “brocade”, and another important element of the painting is a spikelet of wheat.

Pizhma painting

Artist: Mila Losenko

Pizhma painting has been known since the 17th century. It was usually done in watercolor - red, green, yellow, black. Bright northern murals with complex ornaments are not at all similar to Pizhma, where the basis is a clear geometry, made with black paint, which was made from soot with larch resin. Rhombuses, dots, crosses, strict symmetry - this is Pizhma painting.

Petersburg painting

Artist: Mila Losenko

Undeserved oblivion overtook this kind of folk crafts in Russia only in the 20th century. But once Petersburg painting was very popular. Buying an abundance of different colors, it is incredibly interesting and original. Petersburg painting arose on the basis of the study of trays created in the 19th century in St. Petersburg. Exquisite white flowers with golden leaves on a black background - this is the St. Petersburg painting school. Leaves and flowers are painted with delicate translucent strokes, reminiscent of the fogs and white nights of St. Petersburg.

June 12, 2014, 04:16 PM

Folk crafts are exactly what makes our culture rich and unique.
Painted objects, toys and fabric products are taken away by foreign tourists in memory of our country.
Almost every corner of Russia has its own type of needlework, and in this article we will look at the brightest and most famous of them.

Dymkovo toy

The Dymkovo toy is a symbol of the Kirov region, emphasizing its rich and ancient history. It is molded from clay, then dried and fired in a kiln. After that, it is painted by hand, each time creating a unique copy. No two toys are the same.
This is one of the oldest Russian crafts, which Vyatka craftsmen have been doing for 400 years. The appearance of the toy is associated with the spring holiday Whistle, when clay whistles in the form of lambs, horses, goats or ducks came out of the hands of the women of the Dymkovo settlement.
In the 30s of the 20th century, not only a large number of variations of spring toys appeared on the theme of everyday and fairy-tale plots, but many new ornaments and color combinations were developed. Each toy is unique and unique, because it is molded and painted by the master every time anew. At the same time, there are no analogues of this clay miracle in the world.

Zhostovo painting

At the beginning of the 19th century, the Vishnyakov brothers lived in one of the villages near Moscow in the former Troitskaya volost (now the Mytishchi district), and they painted lacquered metal trays, sugar bowls, pallets, papier-mâché boxes, cigarette cases, tea caddies, albums and other things. Since then, artistic painting in the Zhostovo style began to gain popularity and attract attention at numerous exhibitions in our country and abroad.

Khokhloma

Khokhloma is one of the most beautiful Russian crafts, which originated in the 17th century near Nizhny Novgorod. This is a decorative painting of furniture and wooden utensils, which is loved not only by connoisseurs of Russian antiquity, but also by residents of foreign countries.
Khokhloma painting appeared in the village of Khokhloma, on the left bank of the Volga. However, there are a large number of other versions of the appearance of this ancient folk craft. Traditional juicy rowan berries in gilded leaves on a black background can hardly leave you indifferent. Later, images of birds, fish and animals were added with floral ornaments. Fancifully intertwined herbal patterns of bright scarlet berries and golden leaves on a black background can be admired endlessly. Therefore, even traditional wooden spoons, presented on the most insignificant occasion, leave the kindest and longest memory of the donor in the recipient.

Gorodets painting

Gorodets painting has existed since the middle of the 19th century. Bright, laconic patterns reflect genre scenes, figures of horses, roosters, floral ornaments. The painting is done with a free stroke with a white and black graphic stroke, decorates spinning wheels, furniture, shutters, doors.

Ural malachite

Known deposits of malachite are in the Urals, Africa, South Australia and the USA, however, in terms of color and beauty of patterns, malachite from foreign countries cannot be compared with the Urals. Therefore, malachite from the Urals is considered the most valuable in the world market.

Gusevskoy crystal

Products made at the crystal factory in the city of Gus-Khrustalny can be found in museums around the world. Traditional Russian souvenirs, household items, sets for the festive table, elegant jewelry, boxes, handmade figurines reflect the beauty of native nature, its customs and original Russian values. Colored crystal products are especially popular.

Matryoshka

A round-faced and plump cheerful girl in a scarf and a Russian folk dress won the hearts of lovers of folk toys and beautiful souvenirs around the world. Matryoshka (from the diminutive name "Matryona") is a Russian wooden toy in the form of a painted doll, inside of which there are smaller dolls similar to it. Now the matryoshka is not just a folk toy, the keeper of Russian culture: it is a memorable souvenir for tourists, on the apron of which game scenes, fairy tale plots and landscapes with sights are finely drawn. Matryoshka has become a precious collectible that can cost more than one hundred dollars.

Enamel

Vintage brooches, bracelets, pendants, which have quickly “entered” into modern fashion, are nothing more than jewelry made using the enamel technique. This type of applied art originated in the 17th century in the Vologda region. Masters depicted floral ornaments, birds, animals on white enamel using a variety of colors. Then the art of multi-colored enamel began to be lost, it began to be replaced by monochromatic enamel: white, blue and green. Now both styles are successfully combined.

Tula samovar

In his free time, Fedor Lisitsyn, an employee of the Tula Arms Plant, liked to make something from copper, and once made a samovar. Then his sons opened a samovar establishment, where they sold copper products, which were wildly successful. The Lisitsyn samovars were famous for their variety of shapes and finishes: barrels, vases with chasing and engraving, egg-shaped samovars with dolphin-shaped taps, loop-shaped handles, and painted ones.

Palekh miniature

A small town in the Ivanovo region of Palekh has long been famous for icon painting. Since the time of the Tatar-Mongol yoke, small Easter egg icons have been in great demand, which could be easily hidden. In the middle of the 17th century, Palekh works reached Moscow, and masters began to be invited to work - the Faceted Chamber in the Kremlin, the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, the Novodevichy Convent were decorated with Palekh icons. In the 20th century, Palekh masters were forced to change the plot focus of their works - Pushkin's fairy tales, scenes from village life, revolutionary motives.
Palekh miniature is a special, subtle, poetic vision of the world, which is characteristic of Russian folk beliefs and songs. The painting uses brown-orange and bluish-green tones. Palekh painting has no analogues in the whole world. It is made on papier-mâché and only then transferred to the surface of caskets of various shapes and sizes.

gzhel

Gzhel bush, a district of 27 villages located near Moscow, is famous for its clays, which have been mined here since the middle of the 17th century. In the 19th century, Gzhel masters began to produce semi-faience, faience and porcelain. Of particular interest are still objects painted in one color - blue overglaze paint applied with a brush, with graphic rendering of details.

Pavloposad shawls

Bright and light, feminine Pavloposad shawls are always fashionable and relevant. This folk craft appeared at the end of the 18th century at a peasant enterprise in the village of Pavlovo, from which a handkerchief manufactory subsequently developed. It produced woolen shawls with a printed pattern, very popular at that time. Now the original drawings are complemented by various elements such as fringe, created in different colors and remain a great accessory to almost any look.

Vologda lace

Vologda lace is woven on wooden sticks, bobbins. All images are made with a dense, continuous, uniform in width, smoothly wriggling linen braid. They clearly stand out against the background of patterned lattices, decorated with elements in the form of stars and rosettes.

Shemogoda carved birch bark

Shemogod carving is a traditional Russian folk art craft of birch bark carving. The ornaments of Shemogoda carvers are called “birch lace” and are used in the manufacture of caskets, boxes, tea caddies, pencil cases, tuess, dishes, plates, cigarette cases. The symmetrical pattern of Shemogoda carving consists of floral ornaments, circles, rhombuses, and ovals. Images of birds or animals, architectural motifs, and sometimes even scenes of walking in the garden and drinking tea can be inscribed in the drawing.

Tula gingerbread

Tula gingerbread is a Russian delicacy. Without these sweet and fragrant products, not a single event took place in Rus' - neither cheerful nor sad. Gingerbread was served both at the royal table and at the peasant table. The traditional form is given to the gingerbread with the help of a board with a carved ornament.

Orenburg downy shawl

Shawls are knitted from natural goat down and are amazingly delicate, beautiful, warm and practical. Openwork shawls are so thin and elegant that they can be threaded through a wedding ring. They are valued by women all over the world and are considered a wonderful gift.

Happy RUSSIA day!!!

In our vast country, rich in various natural materials and multinational human resources, over time, a lot of new directions have been formed. handicrafts. Even the crafts borrowed from the "neighbors" acquired a certain uniqueness, motives, characteristic, at times, only in a certain area. The folk crafts of Russia are our heritage, which you must know and honor in order to preserve the traditional Russian culture and bring a lot of new things to it.

Artistic folk crafts need a separate description. There are innumerable types of crafts, but not all manufactured products are highly artistic. But here the border is very blurred, if it exists at all. Let's figure it out.

The lack of a clear definition of crafts and art products only means that fewer and fewer people are dealing with this issue. - the creative activity of artisans, aimed at creating unique and inimitable items using their hand tools, skills, ingenuity and inner sense of beauty. Accordingly, artistic products are the result of the creative work of an artisan.

Why do I put creativity at the head of everything? I believe that as soon as products begin to be stamped, copied, they automatically cease to be artistic. How unpleasant it is for me to see copies of the same subject in the art store! It's stamping! The artist is always in search, he cannot have the same picture. Like any craftsman, each product is unique. The craftsman is able to define his work among the variety of seemingly identical items.

So, I was approached with a question by the master, who saw the photo image of the product in the gallery on the site. I took this photo in a kindergarten in my native village. The master identified his work and together we found out how this item could have ended up on my site.

Let's summarize. Among any craft, separate artistic trends can be distinguished, any art craft can be lost along with a creative vein. I'm not saying that the conveyor is bad. He also has a place, but you can not lose the craving for creating something new, unique.

Classification of types of crafts

You are already familiar with some types of crafts. Of course, you have heard about products made of birch bark, wood, metal. So, the types of folk crafts are primarily formed from product material. This includes the processing of metal, wood, stone, clay and other materials.

Another gradation of types of folk crafts is already narrower than the previous one - division by processing method of this or that material. In this article we will consider several main types of craft. In the future, this article will be supplemented with more detailed information, but for now it will only be a brief introductory material.

I don't think there is a clear division, and some crafts can only be relatively formulated. In addition, now the types of folk crafts in Russia have been supplemented with new directions. I don’t know whether it is already possible to call handicrafts that have taken root in our time a traditional craft. But back to what I know. I will build a list of craft types exactly the way I wanted: the main sections by the name of the material, and the subcategories - by the method of processing. All of these species can be artistic folk crafts.

1. Wood

There are many riches in the vastness of the Russian land. One of the available ones is undoubtedly wood. It is available not only because it covers most of the territory, but also in terms of processing methods. Agree, for some types of processing you do not need complex devices and fixtures. Hence the variety of types and subspecies of crafts associated with the use of wood.

• Woodcarving. There are several types of woodcarving:
  • Flat thread (contour, bracket, geometric, etc.);
  • Relief carving (flat-relief carving, deaf, Kudrinskaya, etc.);
  • Through thread (cut and saw);
  • Sculptural carving (3D);
  • House carving (can combine several types);
• Milling. Processing on a lathe, milling cutter;
• Birch carving;
• Birch bark embossing;
• Tues manufacturing;
• Souvenir production(amulets, jewelry, accessories, toys and pictures);

2. Metal

When the metal and its properties were discovered, a technological revolution took place. Many household items and tools were replaced with metal ones. This did not displace other materials, by no means - it made it possible to process them more efficiently. And thanks to the properties of the metal, the range of artisan products has multiplied several times. Metal processing is technically much more complicated than wood, but it's worth it and at the moment it is possible to clearly formulate metal processing methods:

• Forging;
• engraving;
• Chasing;
• blackening;
• Casting;
• Filigree(soldered, openwork, voluminous);
• Milling. Processing on a lathe, milling cutter.

3. Clay

A natural material that has received no less distribution than wood. This type of material suffers from a small number of types of processing, which also affects the variety of clay products. Most of the products are utensils, and the rest are sculptures and souvenirs. But the plasticity and ease of processing of the material, along with accessibility, allow a small number of types of products to give the most incredible shapes.

• pottery;

4. Stone.

Very difficult to process. Due to the rarity of some materials, difficulties in processing - such a high cost of products. Take a sculpture. The works of art of the Middle Ages are priceless, although they are made of marble or plaster. The number of craftsmen is much less than the number of, say, wood carvers. And not every stone is suitable for processing. Nevertheless, stone products, whether it be a precious stone or a huge granite, are truly impressive and delightful.

• Sculpture;
• Thread;
• Gypsum(ebb of reliefs and three-dimensional figures);

5. Bone

Bone carved caskets are amazing. Intricate patterns and plots can be considered endlessly. But the distribution of this type of folk craft is highly dependent on the territory. Not every bone is suitable for processing, not all animals have the necessary valuable body parts, and all this is aggravated by the fact that many animal species are rare and subject to protection.

• Thread;

6. Thread

Few types of folk crafts can be called exclusively female. Working with a thread can be classified as one of them. Making products from a thread is associated with incredible perseverance and concentration. When creating the most complex patterns and objects, one cannot do without arithmetic and cutting skills, since loops love counting, and most products are clothes that are subject to certain important requirements of fashion, convenience, practicality and beauty.

• Knitting;
• Weaving;
• Lace;
• Embroidery;

7. Skin

Leather products are becoming rarer and rarer. The price and the possibility of replacing with artificial polymers affected the spread of this type of craft. I don’t remember seeing a real work of art made of leather, made by hand, lately. Nevertheless, in recent times, this material was used to manually create art products. Ordinary objects were mainly decorated with inserts of multi-colored leather, compositions and patterns were created.

• Manufacture of clothes and shoes;
• Embossing;
• Thread;

Often, craftsmen combined several types of crafts in one product. So, birch bark tuesas could be decorated with embossing, carving, painting, as well as their wooden covers, carved stone was enclosed in a metal frame, and clay products were supplemented with various materials to create bizarre compositions.

This is not a complete list of types of crafts. There are a lot of subspecies, the features of which got their roots both in relation to the nationality of the peoples, and geographical location, and even species of animals and plants, common near the villages of masters.

We will try to consider many of the listed folk crafts using examples and master classes that reflect the features of technologies and methods of work. And I ask you, my dear reader, for a favor: if there is an opportunity to contribute to the development of traditional crafts and arts and crafts, be sure to tell others about it. You can do it on this resource. A site about folk crafts is looking for talents.

12.02.2017 13.02.2018

Russian folk crafts- a form of folk art, in which Russian traditional customs, which originated many centuries ago, are clearly traced. Products of Russian crafts combine the uniqueness of Russian traditional culture.

murals:
-gzhel- a rich Russian folk craft for the production of ceramics (porcelain) and a type of Russian folk blue and white painting from the Moscow region.
-Gorodets painting- Russian folk art craft. It has existed since the middle of the 19th century in the area of ​​​​the city of Gorodets. Bright, laconic Gorodets painting (genre scenes, figurines of horses, roosters, flower patterns), made with a free brushstroke with white and black graphic stroke, adorned spinning wheels, furniture, shutters, doors. An artel was founded in 1936 (since 1960, the Gorodetskaya Rospis factory), which produces souvenirs; masters — D. I. Kryukov, A. E. Konovalov, I. A. Mazin, V. V. Putintsev.
-Zhostovo painting- Russian folk craft of artistic painting of tin trays, existing in the village of Zhostovo, Moscow Region, since 1825. The main motif of Zhostovo painting is a flower bouquet of a simple composition, in which large garden and small wild flowers alternate.
-Mezen painting- a certain type of painting of wooden spinning wheels and utensils - ladles, boxes, brothers, which had developed by the beginning of the 19th century in the village of Palaschelye on the banks of the Mezen River.
-Palekh miniature- folk craft, developed in the village of Palekh, Ivanovo region. The lacquer miniature is executed in tempera on papier-mâché. Caskets, caskets, capsules, brooches, panels, ashtrays, tie clips, needle cases, etc. are usually painted. Typical plots of the Palekh miniature are borrowed from everyday life, literary works of the classics, fairy tales, epics and songs. The works are usually done on a black background and painted in gold.
-Tagil tray- Russian folk craft for the manufacture and artistic lacquer painting of metal trays, existing in the city of Nizhny Tagil, a unique original phenomenon of Russian culture. It is believed that the Tagil painting is the predecessor of the Zhostovo painting. The craft of the Tagil tray is one of the brands of Russian culture, known far beyond the borders of Russia.
-Fedoskino lacquer miniature- a type of traditional Russian lacquer miniature painting with oil paints on papier-mâché, which developed at the end of the 18th century in the village of Fedoskino near Moscow.
-Khokhloma- an old Russian folk craft, born in the 17th century in the city of Semyonov, Nizhny Novgorod region. Khokhloma is a decorative painting of wooden utensils and furniture, made in black and red (and, occasionally, green) on a golden background. Khokhloma's traditional ornaments are red juicy rowan and strawberry berries, flowers and branches. Often there are birds, fish and other animals.

Fabric products:
-Vologda lace- Russian lace, woven on bobbins (wooden sticks); distributed in the Vologda region since the 16th-17th centuries. All the main images in the linking Vologda lace are made with a dense continuous, uniform in width, smoothly wriggling braid, they clearly stand out against the background of patterned lattices, decorated with inlays in the form of stars and rosettes.
-Yelets lace- a kind of Russian lace, which is woven on bobbins. It has existed since the beginning of the 19th century. The center is the city of Yelets (Lipetsk region). It is believed that Yelets lace is thinner and lighter than Vologda lace.
-Mtsensk lace- a type of Russian lace, which is woven on bobbins, developed in the city of Mtsensk, Oryol region.
- Orenburg downy shawl - a knitted shawl made from the down of Orenburg goats and warps (cotton, silk, etc.). Down-knitting craft originated in the Orenburg region in the 18th century. The cobweb and stole are very thin, like cobwebs, scarves. Thin cobwebs, as a rule, have a complex pattern and are used as decoration. The thinness of the product is often determined by 2 parameters: whether the product passes through the ring and whether it fits in a goose egg.
-Pavlovo shawls (shawls)- printed woolen shawls traditionally black or red, with a three-dimensional floral pattern. The production was established in the middle of the 19th century in Pavlovsky Posad. More about the Orenburg and Pavloposad shawls.

Toys:
-Abashevskaya toy- Russian clay toy. Artistic craft, formed in the Spassky district, now the Spassky district of the Penza region.
-Bogorodsk toy- Russian folk craft, consisting in the manufacture of carved toys and sculptures from soft woods (linden, alder, aspen). Its center is the village of Bogorodskoye, Sergiev Posad district, Moscow region of Russia.
-Dymkovo toy- Russian clay toy, painted and fired in a kiln. The name comes from the place of production - the settlement of Dymkovo, Vyatka province (now the Kirov region). Along with other products of folk crafts, it is considered one of the symbols of Russian craft.
-Zhbannikovskaya toy- Russian folk craft in the villages of Zhbannikovo, Roymino, Ryzhukhino and others in the Gorodetsky district of the Nizhny Novgorod region. The peculiarity of the Zhbannikov toy is that the body of all the figurines resembles a clay pyramid on three base legs.
-Kargopol toy- Russian clay toy. Artistic craft, common in the area of ​​​​the city of Kargopol, Arkhangelsk region.
-Kozhlyanskaya toy - Russian folk clay whistle toy. The name comes from the place of manufacture, the village of Kozhlya, Kurchatov district, Kursk region.
-Matryoshka- Russian wooden toy in the form of a painted hollow doll, inside of which there are smaller dolls similar to it. The traditional matryoshka painting often depicts peasant girls in traditional attire. Recently, the possible range of mural themes is unlimited, ranging from fairy-tale characters to Soviet leaders. Matryoshka is one of the most popular souvenirs for foreign tourists in Russia.
-Stary Oskol clay toy- Russian folk art craft in the Starooskolsky district of the Belgorod region. Known since the beginning of the 18th century.
-Filimonov toy- Russian clay toy. Old Russian applied art craft, formed in the village of Filimonovo, Odoevsky district, Tula region.

Publications in the Traditions section

Ancient crafts: 5 places on the map of Russia

To sculpt a clay toy, weave lime bast shoes or paint a tray? We invite you to a virtual tour of cities and villages, where the traditions of folk crafts are inherited. Get to know unique crafts and #have a restinRussia.

Sloboda Dymkovo (city of Kirov) - whistles for "whistle dancing"

Dymkovo toy

Painting of a Dymkovo clay toy

Dymkovo toy

More than 400 years ago, in the settlement of Dymkovo (today - a microdistrict of the city of Kirov), the first ceremonial toys - whistles appeared. They were made from red clay and river sand for the spring holiday "pandemonium". Thus, one of the oldest art crafts in Russia was born in Dymkovo. Dymkovo toys acquired their familiar appearance in the 19th century: they began to be painted with characteristic colorful patterns.

Tourists usually come to Dymkovo in summer or autumn: spring floods occur here. In the "Vyatka Venice", as the locals call the settlement, festivals, competitions, concerts, as well as master classes in modeling and painting toys are held. At the end of August, Dymkovo residents celebrate Spasov Day - the main holiday of the settlement.

The museum "Dymkovo toy" works in Kirov. Museum guests can learn the history of ancient crafts, meet craftswomen and together with them sculpt famous clay figurines.

The village of Korovino (Vladimir region) - dishes from "clay dough"

Ware before firing, molded by master V.V. Karavaev from the village. Korovino, Melenkovsky district, Vladimir region. Photo by A.G. Kuleshova. 2010

Melenkovskaya ceramics. Pots for second courses, made in the workshop of the Malakhovs from the village. Korovino, Melenkovsky district, Vladimir region. Photo by A.G. Kuleshova. 2010

Melenkovskaya ceramics. Beer mugs made in the Malakhov workshop from the village of. Korovino, Melenkovsky district, Vladimir region. Photo by A.G. Kuleshova. 2010

Pottery craftsmen from the village of Korovino used local clay for work - white and red. Ceramics were fired in a special way, and then covered with colored contrasting glaze. Durable and beautiful earthenware was in great demand at the fairs of Vladimir, Suzdal, Murom and Pavlov.

Ceramics are still being made here according to ancient technologies. The craftsmen prepare the clay themselves. First, it is stored in special pits and "ripens" in the sun. Then water is added to it and “clay dough” is prepared. The molded dishes are dried by craftsmen, then fired and decorated with colored or transparent glaze. Masters can cover the entire product, paint it or decorate it “marbled”, mixing several colors.

Guests of the village of Korovino can not only look at the work of masters, but also take a few lessons in pottery. Tourists here will be told about the history of the local craft and taught its main secrets.

Zhostovo village (Moscow region) - "blooming" trays

Zhostovo tray

Zhostovo factory of decorative painting

The village of Zhostovo, which is located near the city of Mytishchi near Moscow, is famous for metal painting. From the beginning of the 19th century, Zhostovo masters conquered the Russian Empire with trays with picturesque bouquets.

The first "lacquer workshop" was opened here by Count Sheremetyev's serf Philip Vishnyakov at the beginning of the 19th century. At first, papier-mache items (purses, cigarette cases, snuff boxes) were painted here, and by the 1830s, several local workshops began to produce forged metal trays at once. They were decorated with a special - "Zhostovo" - painting: bouquets of field and garden flowers, as if illuminated from the inside, and small gold ornaments along the edge.

Today in Zhostovo, everything reminds of the old craft: even the signs on the facades of buildings and road signs are made in the form of trays. Many locals open their own workshops or work in a decorative painting factory. In the only Tray Museum in the world, guests decorate metal blanks themselves. After drying in a special oven and applying varnish, the products can be taken home.

The village of Kubachi, Dakhadaevsky district (Dagestan) - gold inlay

Stirrups of the late XIX - early XX century. Gold notch on iron. Photo by P.R. Gamzatova. 2013

Daggers of the late XIX - early XX century. Gold notch on bone and iron. Photo by P.R. Gamzatova. 2013

The Dagestan village of Kubachi is known for its traditional crafts. "Goldsmiths" make chain mail, jewelry, dishes from different materials: steel and iron, silver and bronze, bones and horns. They are inlaid with non-ferrous metals. Ornaments are applied to products with special sharp tools, then gold or silver wire is driven into the notch with a small hammer. The most popular pattern among jewelers is traditional floral, but geometric elements, images of animals and birds, and national ornaments are also used in the decor.

The main craft of the village of Preobrazhenovka (Lipetsk region) was bast shoes made from lime bast. The fibrous part of the bark was harvested here twice a year. It was dried and stored, rolled into skeins. When the masters were not engaged in seasonal field work, they steamed or soaked the bast and made bast shoes from it. The shoes, created using the so-called oblique weaving technique, were neat and durable, and people from many surrounding villages and villages came to buy them.

Bast shoes in the Lipetsk region were worn until the middle of the twentieth century. As local residents recall, during the war years and immediately after the war, there was no choice. Today, bast shoes are made only to order - for folklore ensembles or as souvenirs.

The material was prepared by the Kultura.RF portal and the Perspektiva Foundation as part of the All-Russian campaign of the Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation #have a restinRussia.