January 2012 : Russian folk art (Zhostovo)

Everybody knows the famous « matriochkas » but there are so many other russian folk arts to discover !

....

Last December, we had the opportunity to visit a national exhibition of russian folk art at the  Expocentre in Moscow. 

Traditionally, exhibits of Russian folk art display the most well known styles of Russian folk crafts such as decorative boxes from Khokhloma, earthenware from St Petersburg or from Gzhel, pieces of lace from Vologda, or toys from Dimkovo and many others. Let's have a look at some of them !

We also discovered that an exhibition room of Zhostovo painted trays opened recently not far from home. We visited it and raised some questions about the shapes and production process ... and they recommended us to go to the factory on the North of Moscow, and also to participate to a "master class" ... so we decided to go there and to see !

Zhostovo is located around 45km North of Moscow but not simple to go there with public transportation. We took first the metro and then waited a bus nearly 45 min, and then the question was where to leave it !  Fortunately, the driver indicated us where to go out (it was a very little village with some houses) and then we walked further 1km following the signs of the Zhostovo factory, and also watching some old datchas.

Then we entered the site and first saw the show room. We had to wait a while in order to join a group for the master class.

Beautiful trays !

Finally, we started the master class with a Russian group : the instructor provided us a small black tray with sketch of flowers and we had to listen the instructions and then paint the colours as explained. After half an hour we had completed the work of art : we let our address in order to collect the trays one week later at the exhibition room in Moscow. The result was not too bad for beginners ! 

Near the class there was an exhibition of painted trays with some looking as paintings.

Now, back to the initial show room where we had to wait another group in order to visit the museum.  

What to see in the museum ?

First, the guide explained the history and in parallel she was painting a tray : the result after 10 minutes was incredible !

What is the origin of Zhostovo ?

Zhostovo's tray has a long history, more than 170 years.

 One man named Korobov established a workshop for making miscellaneous knick-knacks of papier-mache in Moscow at the end of the 18th century (1790). Then he moved it to Zhostovo village north of Moscow. At the same time, another man named Filipp Vishnyakov established a similar workshop in Moscow.  His son Osip, a skillful master moved away from his father, and  came to Zhostovo village where he established his own workshop (1825). His workshop with its sizes growing and fineness of its goods increasing, became a reference for other workshops. The trays were very popular and the business spreaded to some neighboring villages : Ostashkovo, Troitskoe, Sorokino, Khlebnikovo, but only Zhostovo saved its artistic merit at present days. They were also doing lacquer articles made of papier-mache. At the end of the 18th and the beginning of the 19th centuries the articles made of papier-mache, such as caskets, snuff-boxes, tea-sets, cigar-cases, appeared in the villages called Danilkovo, Fedoskino, Ostashkovo and Zhostovo.


However, on the exhibition in Mitava in 1836, the local trays were not very strong and they lost the competition with Siberian iron trays. Zhostovo producers decided to master some methods of creating metallic trays. Siberian trays were suffering from one thing : it was not convenient to paint them. Then, significant demand on Zhostovo trays implied intensification of this manufacture and new workshops were established. That is why most of the painters are living in the village. The factory is producing tinplate trays, and then the artists are painting them, and after the factory put varnish, doing cooking and finally sending them to commercial stores.

Zhostovo artists created their own artistic style as you can see on the following trays. 

We could think that only flowers are painted : not at all ! (well, 90% are flowers)

Here were ancient trays realized a century ago.

Listen to our guide to know how it is done ! 

First the tray is dread at a temperature of  60-140°C. After that it is lacquered three times with black lacquer, every new layer is dried and polished. Only after that the talented artist's hands could touch it. Zhostovo artists similar to Fedoskino artists paint with oil using squirrel brushes.

Then, it is given to the painter. At first, the painter draws the silhouettes of flowers and leaves, gathering them into the bouquet. He never repeats all the details of the painting twice : every new tray is an original. Then, a painter, using a soft brush, makes shadows, then highlights. After all, he draws carefully all details and binds a bouquet with background by slim volutes. In conclusion, a gold tracery is painted on the tray’s bead. The tray is covered by 3 layers of light lacquer and polished.

Zhostovo artists paint very quickly and accurately. While working, the artist holds the tray on his lap and rotates it. Zhostovo trays have very different shapes (there are more than 30), oval, right-angled, guitar shaped, octahedral, scalloped and others. The painting of flowers is very realistic, but artists never repeat accurate shapes of natural flowers, although they know the colour and the structure of the flowers very good. As a rule their flowers are more juicy, more splendid and colourful. 

In spite of strict traditions, the painting of every artist is very individual : every artist has his own manner, his favourite themes and compositions, his favourite flower.

After a couple of hours spent in Zhostovo, it was time to go back home (using 2 buses, and then the metro). Very interesting day and a good example of folk art located in a small village where very few foreigners are going.