Russian folk painting: types, techniques, patterns and ornaments

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

One of the most striking phenomena of Russian folk art is painting. She decorated various household items. Everyone can easily name Khokhloma and Gzhel. But few people know that there are many more types of Russian folk painting. This article will describe the most famous decorating styles.

General information

Artistic painting is the art of decorating a surface with paints. Painting for a short period of time has become part of a person's daily life.

Russian folk painting styles were used to decorate various items. They painted both wood and ceramics, as well as metal. According to this criterion, the types of painting can be divided into three groups.

1. The base is wood. This type of art includes:

• Khokhloma.
• Gorodets painting.
• Fedoskino.
• Painting of the Northern Dvina.
• Kama painting.
• Mezenskaya.
• Palekh.

2. The basis is ceramics. This type of art includes:

Gzhel

3. The foundation -metal that was used to make trays. It refers to:

Zhostovo painting

As you can see, Russian folk painting on wood is the most popular. And that's understandable.

The most famous types of Russian folk painting will be described below. Among them are Khokhloma, Gzhel, Zhostovo and Gorodets painting.

Khokhloma

Perhaps the most famous Russian folk painting is Khokhloma. The painting is unique in that, thanks to special processing in ovens, the products do not deteriorate even from hot food. In this way, wood acquires the properties of ceramics.

History

This Russian folk style has its roots back in the 17th century in the village of the same name, which was located in the Nizhny Novgorod region. According to one version, the very idea of Khokhloma craft was brought by the Old Believers, who were fleeing persecution for the "old faith". Among these people there were many icon painters. By the beginning of the 18th century, this place becomes a real artistic treasure.

Currently Khokhloma "moved" to the village of Semino and the city of Semyonov. Painting is still being done here, but already on a factory scale.

Elements of Russian folk painting

Red, black and gold are the three main colors, while yellow and green were used as complementary and in small quantities. Brushes are made from squirrel tails. It is this material that makes it possible to draw a thin line.

There are two ways to paint products. The first way - first completely blackThe background is painted over with paint, and a drawing is applied on top. The second way - first, the outline of the ornament is applied, only after that the background is painted over.

If you carefully look at the various works made in the Khokhloma style, you can select several basic patterns:

• Sedges. For this pattern, you need to lightly draw the tip of the brush from top to bottom.
• Blades of grass. The element looks like a small brush stroke with a smooth thickening.
• Drops.
• Antennae.
• Curls.
• Bush. It was drawn by combinations of sedges, blades of grass, droplets, tendrils and curls. Moreover, the elements were always located symmetrically to each other.
• Berries. They mostly painted lingonberries, currants, mountain ash, strawberries or gooseberries.

Production technology

At the very beginning, a wooden base was created. For the most part, these were household items: spoons, bowls, and so on. This basis was called "linen". After drying, the base is covered with specially purified clay and left to dry for 7-8 hours. During the drying process, the product is coated several times with linseed oil.

The next step is called "tinning". Aluminum powder is rubbed into the product with a special swab made of sheepskin. After this procedure, the object acquires a shine and is ready for painting.

Gzhel

An equally famous Russian folk painting is Gzhel, in which only all kinds of shades of blue on a white background are used to draw patterns.

History

The name of the Russian folk painting Gzhel comes from the Gzhel bush area. This is an association of more than 20 villages in the Moscow region. The first mention of this type of Russian folk painting was in the 14th century during the reign of Ivan Kalita. Initially, Gzhel was colored, but in the 19th century Dutch tiles and Chinese porcelain became fashionable. The products were made in white and blue colors. It soon became an integral part of the Russian pattern.

Main stories

The central characters of almost all products made in the Gzhel style are birds, roosters or flowers. The plots of the master of the Russian pattern are taken from their environment. At the same time, the painting itself and the shape of the product do not contradict each other, but form a single whole, complementing each other.

Production technology

Before painting, the quality of porcelain was checked. The product was dipped in magenta. Thus, the porcelain was painted pink, and the slightest cracks could be seen on it.

As a rule, craftsmen used cob alt-based paint. Before the product was fired, it was black. In the work, the master needed only a brush and paint. But, using various techniques, more than 20 shades of blue were created.

Zhostovo painting

Zhostovo painting is a Russian folk craft that was used to decorate metal trays. They exist to this day in the village of Zhostovo, which is located in the Moscow region.

History

History of Zhostovo paintingbegins at the beginning of the 19th century in a number of villages in the Trinity volost. The first papier-mâché lacquerware painters appeared here.

The emergence of the familiar Zhostovo tray is directly related to the Vishnyakov brothers. Thanks to their shop, the production of trays increased. The first things made of metal began to appear. They gradually replaced other papier-mâché crafts.

Main stories

In the Zhostovo painting, the main characters of the works are flowers and floral ornaments. Sometimes they depict scenes of everyday life, landscapes, scenes of festivities, weddings, and so on. But the most common is the image of a bouquet, which is located in the middle of the tray, along the edges of which there is a small gold pattern. Usually in a bouquet there were several rather large flowers, surrounded by a scattering of smaller ones.

Technology

Trays were used for two purposes: for domestic use (as a stand for a samovar or for serving food) and as an interior element. The material for the manufacture of the tray is ordinary sheet iron. The shape of the finished product can be any: round, rectangular, oval, etc. Before applying the pattern, the product goes through several important stages:

• Priming.
• Putting.
• Sanding.
• Varnished.

Thanks to this, the surface of the tray becomes perfectly flat. Oil paints are used for painting. At the end of work, the product is covered with several layers of colorlessvarnish.

The painting itself was carried out in several stages:

• Stage 1. Background. At this stage, the main color is selected. It will be used as the background. Black was preferred, but could use white, red, blue, etc.
• Stage 2. Zamalenok. At this stage, the basis of the future pattern is made. With diluted paint, the master draws the outlines of the future composition in accordance with his idea. After that, the trays are sent to dry in the oven for several hours.
• Stage 3. Shade. At this stage, the master, using translucent paints, applies shadows to the flowers. Thus making them voluminous.
• Stage 4. Laying. This is the most crucial stage. Now the master begins to refine many details, highlight and realize a contrasting or more harmonious structure of his composition.
• Stage 5. Highlight. At this stage, with the help of highlights, light and more volume appear on the flower petals. Glare is needed to create mood and color.
• Stage 6. Drawing. This is the last stage of work on creating a bouquet. Using a very thin brush, the master draws subtle veins on the leaves of the plant, makes a lacy edge on the leaves and seeds in the center of the flower.
• Stage 7. Binding. This stage is the penultimate one in the Zhostovo painting. The artist draws the thinnest stems, blades of grass and tendrils emanating from the bouquet itself. Thus, the master establishes a connection between the bouquet and the background.
• Stage 8. Cleaning. At this stage, the side of the tray is decorated. Usually, a geometric or floral pattern is used for this purpose. The style of cleaning depends on the desire of the master. It can be quite modest and consist of one repeating element, or it can be richly decorated and varied. If you skip this step, the product will look unfinished.

So you can find endless options for similar motifs. But you will never be able to find exact copies or repetitions.

Gorodets painting

Russian folk Gorodets painting has existed since the mid-19th century. Bright and unusual, it served as a decoration for spinning wheels, furniture, shutters and doors.

History

Hints of Gorodets painting can be seen in carved spinning wheels. In Gorodets, they were unique in that the bottom (the place where the spinner sat) was decorated using a special technique. Wooden figurines carved from another breed were inserted into the recesses. Only two types of wood allowed Gorodets craftsmen to create stunning works of art. Later, tinting was added to this.

In the second half of the 19th century, the need for such products increased, which prompted the craftsmen to abandon wood inlay as a complex technique, to move on to simple pictorial elements.

Main stories

Nizhny Novgorod painting is divided into two types: Pavlovskaya and Gorodets. They decorated chests, arches, sleighs and so on.

Gorodets Russian folk painting is rich in content. Here you can see a variety of scenes. For the most part, these were domestic situations. At the same time, most of the plot was devoted tofloral motifs. You can also meet birds and animals as the main characters of the painting. They can be both stylized and realistic. As a rule, the images were symmetrical, with animals or birds looking at each other.

This painting is characterized by the use of underpainting circles, spirals, drops, arcs, brackets, strokes and dots. At the same time, the last types of patterns are applied by the artist at the final stage in order to "revive" his work.

The painting uses not so many colors: red, green, blue and black. Images are applied to a tree without a preliminary drawing. Patterns are applied immediately with a brush, while the master can use both wide and free strokes and the finest strokes.

Technology

To create a painting, tempera is used - a paint that is made on the basis of dry pigments in powder form. At the same time, it can be created both from natural materials and from their artificial counterparts. Sometimes a mixture of gouache with PVA glue is used. But keep in mind that when drying, the color becomes whitish. Therefore, before applying the next layer, let the previous one dry.

Painting is done immediately on a wooden base. If desired, it is primed with red, yellow or black paint. The future composition can be outlined with a thin line using a simple pencil. But more experienced artists tend to skip this step and apply the pattern right away with a brush.

After the pattern has completely dried, the product is covered with a transparent varnish in severallayers, each of which is thoroughly dried. They use either oil varnish, which is applied with a special swab, or nitro-lacquer, for which the help of an airbrush is needed. This ensures evenness and smoothness of the finished product. Such a coating is needed to protect the product from chemical or mechanical damage.

Russian folk painting today

Even in the 21st century, painting does not lose its relevance. Painted products are not just a part of the interior. Many of them have a wide functional load and are actively used in everyday life. For example, slicing food on a decorated cutting board or storing bread in a bread box painted by a master craftsman is still relevant.

Painted items will bring their flavor even to a modest room, making it unique. But do not overload the apartment with such things, as many of them look very bright. Two or three will suffice.

Also, different types of Russian folk painting are actively used to decorate walls, columns, borders and other interior elements. This solution looks great in a children's room or in the kitchen, so it will make the atmosphere brighter and more positive.