Products
|
 St. Basil Cathedral |
 |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
 |
Policy | |
About Us | |
Contact Us | |
Shopping Cart | |
Retailer Registration | |
Retailer Log in | |
 |
||||||||
|
Lacquer boxes are the most exquisite of all Russian art. They are hand painted with flawless technique in a tradition that goes back to Peter the Great, and can only be described as masterpieces. On them, are painted scenes from fairy tales, legends, history and other works of art. The artist uses a magnifying glass to paint. That is why the detail is so fine. There are four great schools of Russian Lacquer art. They are named after the villages North of Moscow where they developed. Each school has its own distinct style. Fedoskino, the oldest school, takes inspiration from classical Russian paintings, folk scenes, etc. The colors are subdued and representations are realistic. Artists of Fedoskino often use the striking technique of painting on gold and silver foil, mother of pearl and malachite with translucent paints which allow the effect of these materials to show through. |
 Palekh
was an ancient center
for painting icons to adorn the churches and cathedrals of Russia.
The Communists banned all religious motifs, so the Palekh artists
turned to painting lacquer miniatures. Instead of oils, they
use egg tempera. The colors are bright and vibrant. The figures
on the paintings are elongated and are bordered with gold filigree.
Mstiora artists also paint with tempera. Like Palekh artists, they also paint scenes from poetry and fairy tales, and adorn their boxes with gold filigree. The colors are lighter and less contrasting than those of Palekh. Kholui, like Palekh, was an old center for painting icons. Unlike other schools, the masters of Kholui exercise more freedom of expression. There are two principal structural materials used in lacquer boxes: paper mache and olgolite. Paper mache is lighter than olgolite; however, it is more expensive. Lacquer boxes blanks can take from 20 days to sometimes as much as 90 days for each article to make from start to finish, excluding the time needed for actual painting by the artist. In these beautiful boxes you shall store your finest treasures and memories. An almost impervious gloss finish protects for generations the hand-painted artwork. |
 |
Featured Items | |
 |
||||
