Painted Ware from Gorodets (Part 1) Gorodets painted decorations on wood are so unusual that Vasily Voronov, the famous folk art researcher, called Gorodets articles “rural painting on distaffs”. The distaff was the constant companion of the Russian peasant woman, a common wedding present to the bride. Therefore its decoration was carefully considered. Using bright size paints, village craftsmen painted on the broad horizontal seats of distaffs scenes of village celebrations—festive gatherings, outdoor entertainments, weddings—and surrounded them with flower garlands highlighted by large splendid roses. This type of folk painting was widespread in the Gorodets-on-the-Volga district in the last half of the nineteenth century, replacing the former practice of decorating distaffs with carving. The distaffs were practical as well as decorative; after spinning, the village women would detach the painted seats and hang them on the walls as pictures. In the villages around Gorodets— Khlebaikha, Kurtsevo and Koskovo—simple peasant utensils were made, such as salt-cellars, bast baskets, boxes for storing flax, children’s chairs and rolling toys, all decorated with gay floral designs, painted in energetic brushstrokes. In the first decades after the October Revolution of 1917, the demand for distaffs declined, and Gorodets craftsmen turned to painting decorative wooden panels. Folk paintings acquired new motifs: horsemen took on the aspect of cavalry troops, the traditional interior of a peasant izba was replaced by the reading room of a collective farm, and wedding banquets now reflected the features of the new life. New ornamental patterns have also been developed. Designs resembling carpets or tapestries, with scarlet, yellow and lavender roses and tiny little starlike flowers scattered freely upon a bright blue field, evoked reminiscences of magical gardens or fairy-tale meadows. During the Second World War, the Gorodets handicraft industry ceased to exist. Its rebirth took place in the 1950s. (Aurora Art, 1988)
Posted on: Thu, 08 Aug 2013 15:36:04 +0000
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