Russia, with its birch bark baskets, nesting dolls, and gilded icons, could appear unique, even strange, to Westerners. Although the Iron Curtain has long since fallen, many American collectors remain unfamiliar with her vast variety of crafts and treasures.
For centuries on end, wood, so ample in this land of dense forests, was generally fashioned into utilitarian, domestic objects. Every winter, when bitter snows blanketed the fields and winds swept the woodlands, peasants traditionally exchanged their plows and cut-saws for blocks of wood and carving knives at their firesides. For lengthy months, by the dim light of their smoky cabins, they patiently turned out wooden plates, bowls, spoons, and ladles. These with time and inclination may have painted their handicrafts.
By the mid-17th century, expert craftsmen in Khokhloma (pronounce this by clearing your throat twice, then rhyming with “coma”), a trading submit within the Nizhny Novgorod region, alongside the mighty Volga River, had gained fame for creating a novel, ornamental wooden lacquer ware.
Maybe khokhlomas, as Khokhloma’s creations themselves came to be recognized, had been inspired by Russia’s traditional spiritual works of art.
In line with some sources, khokhloma’s traditional shade mixture, red, black, and gold, once held deep non secular significance. Within the Japanese Orthodox Church, they clarify, vivid shades of red representing magnificence, black representing grief that cleanses the soul, and gold representing heavenly light as soon as embellished sacred church vessels and icons. True, only clergy and rich nobility could afford to own such costly works of art, which featured gold-haloed saints set against shimmering gold leaf backgrounds.
But because of their similarity, a woodsman or laborer, eyeing his first red, black, and golden khokhloma buy, must have felt as if he owned a little bit of heaven. Although he possible ate from his plainer items daily, he probably used his best khokhlomas only on special events, like christenings, marriages, and religious holidays—if at all.
Creating khokhloma was, and still is, an intricate, time-consuming craft passed down from generation to generation. First, artisans seasoned blocks of linden, beech, or birch, then either carved them with knives or turned them on lathes to create traditional home items. After drying them in kilns, they primed them with liquid clay to seal their pores. Then they fired their creations again. Next they hand rubbed them a number of times with raw linseed oil until they turned glossy. Finally, they coated these things with special metallic powder, and fired them up yet again. When khokhlomas emerged from the kiln, they glistened with golden (or sometimes silver) color like fantastic metal ware. But khokhlomas don’t include a little bit of metal. To additional gild the lily, expert artists then adorned these shiny implements with traditional red and black geometric patterns or highly stylized flowers. Then they completed them with coats of clear lacquer.
By the 20th century, curiosity in khokhloma had waned dramatically. Russia’s 1917 October Revolution, nevertheless, heralded a national revival of the country’s folks arts, including khokhloma. Through the 1920s and ’30s, artisans banded together into cooperative associations, adopting modern tools and strategies, like replacing tin with aluminum powder and replacing linseed with artificial oil. Prior to now, khokhlomas had easily cracked, crazed, chipped, or dulled via years of use. With immediately’s improvements, nonetheless, even delicate ones, as soon as deemed suitable just for decoration or festive events, are durable enough to be used yr round.
In the 1960s, the Soviets, to encourage manufacturing, based two khokhloma factories, one close to Khokhloma village and one other in close by Semyonov. Between them, 1,000 artisans preserve this craft’s secret techniques and traditions for future generations, producing domestic gadgets, furnishings, and souvenirs. Even as we speak, crafting a khokhloma can take anyplace from to 4 months, depending on the intricacy of its design and its size. Since each is hand painted, every is one in every of a kind. Because Russians hold master artists in high esteem, the Soviet Union, in 1979, issued postage stamp honoring khokhloma craftsmen and their art.
Most fashionable khokhlomas, to increase buyer enchantment, characteristic themes drawn from nature. Luscious-looking strawberries, red and black currants, cherries, rowanberries, and raspberries, all a-swirl with grapevines are favorite choices. So are khokhlomas rich with gilded green leaves and orange berries, although they break with traditional colors. Immediately, khokhlomas come in a thousand shapes and sizes, together with egg cups, honey pots, trinket boxes, mugs, goblets, reducing boards, and salt boxes.
As years go by, khokhloma continues to achieve in popularity. Few tourists go away Russia without tucking a khokhloma souvenir or two of their suitcases. Khokhloma designs adorn t-shirts, decorate world class racecars, and even grace the tails of several British Airways Boeing 757s. Sets of widespread khokhloma spoons, cheap and widely available even within the U.S., make uncommon presents or hanging ornamental accents for eating areas or kitchens. So do khokhloma dishes trays, tea sets, spice units, serving dishes, and candle holders. Delicate keepsake boxes or fetching brooches make positive, comparatively low cost personal gifts. All-inclusive eating units, which embrace serving bowls and platters in various sizes, could, then again, command hundreds of dollars. Larger, more intricate pieces, like khokhloma swan-bowls, chairs, beds, benches, and children’s table and stool sets, naturally are even more costly.
Russians, true romanticists at heart, embrace khokhloma’s beauty and history as one. Nearly every household in Russian boasts glassed cabinets filled with khokhloma tea cups, saucers, and serving dishes. Many of their treasures, like brightly lacquered borsch ladles, vodka shot glasses, bread basins, diminutive bowls and spoons for enjoying jam, and caviar sets, replicate typical Russian culture. There are even khokhloma toy balalaikas, beloved people stringed devices, available on the market.