Unique paintings on wood - the cultural heritage of Russia

The art of painting on wood can be attributed to the truly Russian property. This is one of the oldest branches of the national craft, widely distributed throughout Russia, especially in its northern latitudes. Russian painting on wood is mentioned in the epics.

In ancient cottages the painting was located absolutely on all objects of everyday life (dishes, utensils, toys and ornaments), it was decorated with a hut itself (platbands, porch). Special communication between the villages located at a great distance from each other could not be, and accordingly, the imitation in the painting was also avoided. Because this kind of folk art was divided into original schools, which received their name from the place of origin. They differed not only in the names, but also in the style of the letter, the qualitative composition of colors, ornaments and characteristic details, which immediately, unmistakably, recognized the address of the manufacture of the product.

Thus, Khokhloma painting on wood, or "Khokhloma", appeared, like many others, in the Nizhny Novgorod region, in the village of the same name. This manner of painting on wood is very well known, it is mentioned in many folklore works, and not only. It differs in obligatory gold background, on which are applied black and red (less often green) paints ornament. Such a painting was mainly subjected to caskets, boxes, small household products.

Often there are samples of Gorodets painting on wood, which originated in the above area, of course, in the city of Gorodets. Its characteristic feature is a white stroke pattern, which makes the pattern convex. The main figure on the general background is depicted by local paint, which also makes it striking.

Less common Polhov-Maydanskaya (mostly whistles and toys) and painting with burning, or Sergiev Posad. Most often, the latter was used when painting caskets with a mandatory image on the lid of the Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra.

Palekh, although he emerged as a school under the Soviet regime, also can be attributed to the traditional painting on wood. He absorbed a rich body of knowledge and skills of ancient masters.

Of particular mention deserves the Mezenskaya painting on wood, the oldest of all, originated at the dawn of time, with the formation of Slavic tribes. No one knows for sure what was its forerunner, the ancient crafts of the Komi Republic or ancient Greek art. The symbolism of the Mezenskaya painting has a clear interpretation, it has such a well-known sign as the swastika personifying the living sun. There are also such symbols: "swan", "bird", "duckling", undulating and inclined lines, symbolizing water and rain. Thanks to these signs, you can decipher the meaning contained in the ancient panels.

This painting appeared in the village of Palashchelje (hence its second name - Palashchelskaya) of the Arkhangelsk Region, on the Mezen River, which flows into the Mezenskaya Bay of the White Sea. In these parts of ancient times, painted everything, but the main subject of artistic processing of local masters was spinning wheel. Mezenskaya spinning wheel was made not from three traditional parts, but was cut out entirely from specially found trees, the rhizome of which could serve as its base. All this was done to make the ornament more capacious and able to tell the descendants of some covenant or story.