Русский ремесленник

The word "Palekh" is familiar to all. Name of the village in the Ivanovo region has become synonymous with amazing multi-color art of painting but a black background papier-mache. Fairytale enchanting spectacle to remember the audience fiery trio, carrying riders among the frosty vortices reaper surrounded by heavy golden wheat, the heroes of Pushkin's poetry and characters in folk tales. Paint works under the transparent layer of lacquer blaze of light, flash and into one another, drawing the line fancifully curled or streamed smoothly. Intricate gold pattern complements the image.
How has arisen in the remarkable art of Palekh lacquer miniature?

Style Palekh formed under the influence of Moscow and Yaroslavl school of ancient Russian painting. In the XVII-XIX centuries the inhabitants of this village were engaged in the manufacture of large icons. Makes them free from field work time. Some artists have written a small icon of a whole year. They paid special attention to decoration images and carefully wrote out the details.
Work on Roads "busy" icon brought from the masters understanding multi-image compositions. With harmony and elegance of elongated figures, ornamental pattern refinement, icons impression of conviviality. The range of paintings were bright red, turquoise, blue, green, yellow paint, complemented by gold light patterns.
Already in the XVII century, residents tried to broaden the scope of Palekh religious themes, saturating the image many episodes, entertaining detail, reflecting the vital observation.
The experience of generations and honed skill of icon predetermined path of development of new art that emerged in Palekh in the early XX century. The first and second generation of artists emerged from the iconic workshops. Should be raised not only on traditional methods of writing, but I have the experience of their teachers.
By the creation of lacquer miniature wizard did not come immediately. Ways of Searching a painted wooden salt shakers, dolls, boxes and dishes.

Birth of Palekh.
In 1921, I. Golikov, in the future famous artist, drew attention to the Moscow Museum of handicraft products FEDOSKINO painters, painted with oil on the black lacquer background. Palekh borrowed from fedoskintsev technology manufacturing papier-mache, but used a tempera painting - paints, diluted emulsion of egg yolks.
Tempera in combination with gold and silver went to paleshanam-udozhnikam from their predecessors --Palekh icon painters.
Founders of the new art were seven artists. AV Kotuhin, IV Golikov, IV Markichev, IM Bakanov, I. Zubkov, VV Kotuhin, AI Zubkov, in 1924 organized a "Palekh Artel ancient paintings . It was an alliance of talents, people brave, not afraid to experiment. With the fullness of revealed individual talents of each, and at the same time, the collective of artists to develop a uniform style of Palekh Art.
The former icon-painters broke down them work canons of medieval paintings and created a new, great art of Palekh. This required not centuries or even decades.

Palekh miniature and folklore
Will the artist makes the nature of exotic flowers to bloom, building unprecedented locks, gives the highest virtues portrayed characters. About all he has seen in miniature want to speak the language of fairy tales: "girl-beauty", "horse-fire", "miracle, marvelous ...
Deep and inseparable relationship of Palekh miniatures folklore - and not only in themes. It lies in the poetic images, in the smooth flow of lines and rhythms of the figure, a constant feeling of festivity. The artist can give his hero tag feature, as in the gay folk tale, but may give it an epic majesty, lyrical song.
The new art of Palekh, their search and discovery at this time, as it were concentrated in the work of Honored Artist of the RSFSR IIGolikov (1886-1937). He was the leader of Palekh, expressing in his works "a vortex that sweeps away the old." His "battle", "Hunting", "three" are imbued with passion.
These blazes intense red color, streaming elastic line, causing a sensation of rapid motion of the vortex.
In the rhythm of fabulously patterned lines that outline the contours of the figures, fancies frantic dance tune. Her second flexible branches of trees. Allocation orders girls shimmer soft tones of paint. Especially warm light yellowish-fawn and faint red color. Light colored spots vibration enhanced shimmer of gold and silver patterns on textile garments.

Jewelry miniature painting

In the last decade, a collection of Palekh lacquers enriched products, for which the painting called "miniature" fits very accurately. This tiny little boxes, bisernitsy, marochnitsy painted with astonishing skill.
Marochnitsa The Tale of Ali, the Egyptian "(1962), performed folk artist of the RSFSR BM Ermolaev (b. 1934) - one of the first studies that determined this new trend in the art of Palekh 1960-1970. It differs only jewelry techniques of painting and its conformity with the form of a tiny object, but the sophistication and imagination, the complexity of miniature tracks, exotic combinations of colors. On the walls and lid of the capsule height of 3.5 centimeters BM Ermolaev events unfolds the tale of Cairo, Ali, an Egyptian merchant, who lost and again found his treasures, and became the king's vizier.
The artist has managed to fit in a small surface images of twenty-six human figures and two camels. Filigree thin lines delineate the graceful figure, transmit eastern bliss, which sit on top of rich merchants, the king respectfully bow before him close. Affects eyes outlandish clothes - high turban on his head, patterned cloth robes. They are surprisingly dressy. Their calls are burning bright colors on a gold background, so rare in the art of Palekh.
In the fairy-tale image of nature and architecture of the artist turns not to the images of the landscape of the East, and the traditional forms of iconic buildings and trees. They are transformed into exotic palaces and palm trees. Finer touches, the sound bursts of color helps to see in this miniature East, its spicy luxury. Even a narrow rim of red ornament on the cover resembles the Arabic script with their patterned ligature.