Decorative arts authors. Applied art - what is it? Arts and crafts and its types

DECORATIVE AND APPLIED ARTS, a type of art, the creation of products that combine artistic and utilitarian functions. Works of decorative and applied art are related to the everyday needs of people and form an integral part of the human environment. The basis and source of decorative and applied art is folk art. The sphere of decorative and applied arts includes products of traditional arts and crafts, art industry and professional author's art. The term “applied art” arose in the 18th century in England and was applied mainly to the creation of household products (painting dishes, fabrics, finishing weapons). In the 20th century, Russian art history adopted the term “decorative and applied art” as a designation for the section of decorative arts, which also includes theatrical and decorative art and design.

A specific feature of works of decorative and applied art is the inextricable connection between the utilitarian and the artistic, the unity of usefulness and beauty, function and decoration. Utilitarianism allows us to classify works of decorative and applied art according to their practical purpose (tools, furniture, dishes, etc.); the function of an object clearly determines its design. The quality that gives an object of decorative and applied art the status of a work of art is decorativeness. It is realized not only in decorating an object with any particular details (decor), but also in its general compositional and plastic structure. The decor has its own emotional expressiveness, rhythm, proportions; he is able to change shape. The decor can be sculptural-relief, pictorially-painted, graphically-carved (see also Engraving); he uses both ornament (including decorative inscriptions - hieroglyphs, calligraphy, Slavic script, etc., revealing the meaning of the images), and various visual elements and motifs ("world tree", birds and animals, plants, etc.) in accordance with a certain decorative and stylistic system (see also Bucranius, Griffin, Rose, Sphinx). In the plate system of decorative and applied art, there is the possibility of using the so-called pure form as the antithesis of any decor: it can manifest itself in the intrinsic beauty of the material, revealing its structural, plastic, color qualities, harmony of proportions, grace of silhouette and contours.

Vessel. Painted ceramics. 3rd millennium BC. Yangshao (China). Museum of Decorative and Applied Arts (Vienna).

Another fundamental feature of decorative and applied art is syntheticity, which implies the combination various types creativity (painting, graphics, sculpture) and different materials in one work. Synthetic in its internal nature, a work of decorative and applied art is often involved in a synthesis of arts, in an ensemble of artistic objects, and may depend on architecture (furniture, decorative sculpture, panels, tapestry, carpet, etc.). As a result of this dependence, decorative and applied art in all eras sensitively and clearly followed changes in styles and changes in fashion.

In decorative and applied art, the image of a thing is determined by the connection between its aesthetic form and functional purpose. On the one hand, there is the concept of the utilitarian and non-representational nature of decorative and applied art as “making things”: a purely practical task does not imply the creation of a full-fledged image (for example, the goal of pottery or basket weaving is not the image of things, but the creation of the thing itself). However, other examples (anthropomorphic ceramics, etc.), which carry a mimetic principle, allow us to speak about imagery as the primary task of creativity in the decorative and applied arts, manifested primarily in associations and analogies (the shape of an object may resemble a flower bud, a drop, a figure of a person or animal, a sea wave, etc.). The dualism of aesthetic and functional tasks determines the figurative specificity of decorative and applied art (limitation of the specificity of images, the tendency to abandon chiaroscuro and perspective, the use of local colors, flatness of images and silhouettes).

Decorative and applied art as a type of artistic activity is associated with the manual labor of a master, which has become an independent branch of production. Further social division of labor leads to the replacement of handicraft production with machine production (manufactures, factories, factories); functional design and decoration become the work of different specialists. This is how the art industry arises, where methods of “applied art” find their place - decorating products with painting, carving, inlay, embossing, etc.

The question of the relationship between manual and machine labor in the production of objects of decorative and applied art was especially acute in the 2nd half of the 19th century, in the context of the problem of “depersonalization” (in the words of W. Morris) of the production of artistic crafts and theories of limited application popular in this era machines as a prerequisite for the revival of national traditions. Contrasting folk handicrafts and mass production, Morris at the same time suggests ways to synthesize them, allowing the creation of a new type of decorative and applied art. Design, which became a new type of artistic activity in the field of industrial (mass) production in the mid-19th century, limited decorative and applied arts primarily to the creation of small-run series of handmade products (see also Industrial Art).

Typology. Each field of arts and crafts has a wide variety of forms; their evolution is directly related to the development of technology, the discovery of new materials, the change in aesthetic ideas and fashion. Works of decorative and applied art vary in functionality, form and material.

One of the oldest types of decorative and applied art is tableware. Its forms varied depending on the material (wooden, metal, clay, porcelain, ceramic, glass, plastic) and purpose (ritual, household, dining, decorative; see also Artistic vessels). Decorative and applied art also includes: religious accessories (banners, frames, lamps - in Christianity; Muslim vessels for ablution, prayer rugs “namazlik”, etc.; Jewish seven-branched menorahs; Buddhist lotus thrones and temple incense burners); interior items (furniture, lighting fixtures, vases, mirrors, writing instruments, boxes, fans, snuff boxes, tiles, etc.); household craft utensils (spinning wheels, rollers, ruffles, rubles, spindles, etc.); glyptic works; Jewelry Art; means of transportation (carts, chariots, carriages, sleighs, etc.); weapon; textiles (see also Batik, Embroidery, Lace, Printed fabric, Weaving; textiles also include carpets, tapestries, tapestries, kilims, felts, etc.); clothes; partly - small plastic (primarily a toy).

The materials used in decorative and applied arts products are just as diverse. The oldest are stone, wood, and bone. Hardwoods were used for the construction of homes, for the manufacture of furniture, household products [pine, oak, walnut (in Renaissance art), Karelian birch (in the era of Russian classicism and Empire style), maple (especially in the Art Nouveau era), mahogany, pear] ; soft varieties (for example, linden) - for making dishes and spoons. Since the 17th century, imported exotic types of wood began to be used in Europe.

Clay processing techniques such as freehand modeling and molding were decisive in the creation of clay products in the initial stages. In the 3rd millennium BC, a potter's wheel appeared, allowing the production of thin-walled dishes.

Ceramics (fired clay) includes terracotta (plain and lacquered), majolica, semi-faience, faience, opaque, porcelain, bisque, the so-called stone mass. The main methods of decorating ceramics are molding, polishing, polishing, color painting, engraving, glazing, etc.

Fabrics have been widely used since the Neolithic era. Outstanding examples of decorative and applied art are ancient Egyptian multi-color linen fabrics, Coptic ones using the batik printing technique; Chinese silk fabrics, Indian muslins, Venetian damask.

Masters of decorative and applied arts often used precious, semi-precious and colored ornamental stones: diamonds, rubies, emeralds, sapphires, jade, lapis lazuli and carnelian, malachite, jasper, etc. (amber also belongs to ornamental materials). Among the various types of processing for a long time cabochons (rounded stones) dominated, then faceted stones appeared. There are complex techniques - the so-called Florentine mosaic (images made of marble and semi-precious stones), Russian mosaic (pasting the round surface of vases with plates of colored stones), etc.

Casket with a depiction of a crucifix and angels. Wood, silver, enamel. 1st quarter of the 13th century. Limoges (France). Hermitage (St. Petersburg).

Among the metals there are precious (gold, silver, platinum), non-ferrous (copper, tin), alloys (bronze, electric, pewter), as well as steel, cast iron and aluminum. Along with noble metals, almost all ancient civilizations processed copper, bronze, and later iron. Gold and silver were initially the main metals in decorative and applied arts, and their shortage was compensated for by various techniques (electroplating and gilding; from the mid-19th century - electroplating). The main metal processing techniques are niello, granulation, embossing, shotting, artistic casting, artistic forging, basma (a type of jewelry technique that imitates embossing), embossing.

Enamel is a special technique and at the same time material, the oldest samples which is found in China. Enamel was usually used as a component complex works decorative and applied arts (for example, the technique of covering engraved images on metal with multi-colored transparent enamel or decorative painting with enamel paints).

Setting of the so-called Gospel from Lorsch. Ivory. 9th century Aachen. Victoria and Albert Museum (London).

Glass, according to its technological parameters, is divided into transparent and opaque, colorless and colored, etc. There are also different original forms from hand-cut glass, blown glass (“winged” Venetian glasses), from cut English crystal, from pressed glass (appeared in 1820 in the USA), colored laminated or milk glass, filigree, engraved, carved, ground or tint glass. Glass processing techniques include inter-glass gilding, painting, millefiori, artistic etching, and iridescence.

The birthplace of artistic varnishes - The Ancient East. In Europe they have been known since the 16th century; in the 17th century, Dutch craftsmen began to paint wooden boxes with gilded ornaments on a black background. Later, the production of painted varnishes arose in many countries. Products made from papier-mâché coated with varnish appeared in Europe in the 18th century, and they reached their peak of popularity in the 19th century, especially in England, Germany and Russia. In the 20th century, Russia became the main center of lacquer art (Fedoskino, Palekh, Kholui and Mstera).

The use of tortoiseshell and ivory dates back to antiquity; then their use was revived in European art in the Middle Ages and, especially, at the end of the 18th century (English and French snuff boxes and teapots, Kholmogory bone carving). Mother of pearl came into fashion in the 1st half of the 19th century for decorating papier-mâché and varnish products, and finishing cutlery.

Historical sketch. The first artistically processed objects appeared in the Paleolithic era. During the Neolithic period, ceramic products became widespread. IN different cultures vases are created with masterly graphic artistic solutions, expressive sacred-mythological plots, painted ceramics with ornamental and other motifs (for example, Chinese vessels of the Neolithic era, 5-3rd millennium BC; ceramics from Susa, 4th millennium BC ; Trypillian ceramics, late 3rd millennium BC).

The most ancient eastern civilizations in the development of decorative and applied arts achieved the same high level, as well as in the field of architecture and sculpture (artistic processing of stone, metal, wood, jewelry, ivory carving, etc.). Jewelers of Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia mastered various subtle techniques for processing precious metals. Ancient Eastern art produced unsurpassed examples of polychrome glazed ceramics; in Egypt, earthenware products (based on silica) were produced - architectural details, sculpture, necklaces, bowls and goblets. The Egyptians (along with the Phoenicians) also made glass objects (around the 3rd millennium BC); The heyday of glass workshops, as well as other crafts, occurred in the New Kingdom (various forms of vessels made of blue or polychrome glass, etc.). Egyptian furniture was made from local ebony (black) wood and imported species (cedar, cypress), decorated with inserts of blue and black faience, covered with gold leaf and inlaid with ivory and painting (some of its forms later greatly influenced the European Empire style). In many regions of China, thin-walled vessels (bowls, vases, jugs and goblets) were discovered, distinguished by their stylistic originality, variety of shapes and bizarre zoomorphic images. In India, a highly developed urban civilization of the Bronze Age left behind expressive household items, painted pottery, and textiles discovered during excavations at Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa. In Western Iran, in Luristan, a culture represented by the Luristan bronzes developed.

The originality of the decorative and applied arts of the Aegean world (see Aegean culture) influenced the art of other countries (Egypt of the New Kingdom, the Middle East) - jewelry, chased cups and bowls, rhytons. The leading type of artistic craft is ceramics (polychrome with stylized patterns, plant motifs, with images of sea animals and fish). Among the highest achievements in the history of decorative and applied art is ancient Greek ceramics - first of all, red- and black-figure vessels coated with varnish, where the form is organically connected with the plot painting and ornament, has clear tectonics, a rich rhythm of lines and proportions (see Vase painting). Ceramics and jewelry made in Greece were exported to many countries around the world, resulting in a wide expansion of Greek artistic traditions. In the decorative and applied arts of the nomadic tribes of Asia and Europe, the Thracians, Celts, and some Finno-Ugric tribes, different shapes animal style; in the middle of the 1st millennium AD, its peculiar form appeared among the Germans; the traditions of the animal style were preserved in medieval art.

The Etruscans, being under strong Greek influence, were able to create an equally distinctive culture with their bucchero ceramics, painted terracotta, and jewelry. Their craving for demonstrative luxury embodied in objects of decorative and applied art was passed on to their successors - the ancient Romans. They borrowed relief ceramics and fabric decoration from the Etruscans, and forms and ornaments from the Greeks. In Roman decor there is a lot of excessive, devoid of Greek taste: lush garlands, bucranias, griffins, winged cupids. During the imperial era, vases made of semi-precious stones (agate, sardonyx, porphyry) became fashionable. The highest achievement of Roman decorative and applied art was the invention of glass blowing techniques (1st century BC), the production of transparent, mosaic, engraved, two-layer, imitating cameo, and gilded glass. Among the metal products are silver vessels (for example, a treasure from Hildesheim), bronze lamps (found during excavations in the city of Pompeii).

The stability of traditions distinguishes the Far Eastern and Indian culture in general, where characteristic types and forms of decorative and applied art were preserved in the medieval era (ceramics and varnishes in Japan, wood, metal and textile products in India, batik in Indonesia). China is characterized by stable images and traditions of stone-cutting, pottery and jewelry, a variety of materials: silk, paper, bronze, jade, ceramics (primarily the invention of porcelain), etc.

In ancient (pre-Columbian) America there were several civilizations (Olmecs, Totonacs, Mayans, Aztecs, Zapotecs, Incas, Chimu, Mochica, etc.) that had a high material culture. The main crafts were pottery, artistic stone processing, including semi-precious rocks, using original technology turquoise mosaics on wood, textiles, jewelry. Ceramics are among the best achievements of ancient American art, unlike others that did not know the potter's wheel (Zapotec funeral urns, Toltec vases, Mixtec polychrome vases, vessels with engraved Mayan ornaments, etc.).

A characteristic feature of medieval art in the countries of the Middle East, North Africa (Maghreb) and regions of Europe inhabited by Arabs is a craving for colorfulness, for valuable decoration, geometric ornament(with plant motifs stylized to the point of abstraction, see Arabesque); The fine tradition was also preserved in the decorative and applied arts of Iran. The main types of decorative and applied arts in Muslim countries were ceramics, weaving, and the production of weapons and luxury goods. Ceramics (mainly ornamental, covered with luster or polychrome painting on a white and colored background) were produced in Iraq (Samarra), Iran (Susa, Ray), medieval Egypt (Fustat), Syria (Raqqa), Central Asia (Samarkand, Bukhara). Hispano-Moorish pottery (Valencia faience) had big influence on European decorative and applied art of the 15th-16th centuries. Blue-and-white Chinese porcelain influenced the ceramics of the Golden Horde, Iran, etc. In the 16th century, Turkish polychrome faience from Iznik flourished. Muslim culture also left many examples of artistic glass, metal (decorated with engraving, chasing, enamel), and weapons. The Islamic world has traditionally used carpets rather than furniture; they were produced in many countries (in the Caucasus, India, Egypt, Turkey, Morocco, Spain, Central Asia); The leading place in carpet weaving belongs to Iran. In Egypt they produced multi-colored woolen trellis fabrics, linen fabrics, and printed material; in Syria, in Spain during the Cordoba Caliphate and Arab masters in Sicily - silk, brocade; in Turkey (in Bursa) - velvet; in Iran (in Baghdad) - silk draperies; in Damascus - so-called damask fabrics.

Byzantium became the heir to many artistic crafts antiquity: glassmaking, mosaic art, bone carving, etc., and also masterfully mastered new ones - the technique of cloisonné enamel, etc. Religious objects and (under the influence of Eastern cultures) luxury goods became widespread here; Accordingly, the style of Byzantine decorative and applied art was refined, decorative and lush at the same time. The influence of this culture extended to the states of Europe (including Ancient Rus'), also Transcaucasia and the Middle East (in Russia, reminiscences of this influence persisted until the Russian-Byzantine style of the 19th century).

In Europe, new forms of decorative and applied art developed during the Carolingian Renaissance under the influence of Byzantium and the countries of the Arab world. In the culture of the Romanesque era, monasteries and city guild corporations played an important role: stone and wood carving, the manufacture of metal products, forged doors and household utensils were practiced. In Italy, where the traditions of late antiquity continued to be preserved, bone and stone carving, the art of mosaics and glyptics, and jewelry developed; In all these areas, masters have achieved the highest perfection. Gothic inherited many of the crafts characteristic of that era; features of the Gothic style are clearly manifested in ivory and silver products, enamels, tapestries and furniture [including wedding chests (in Italy - cassone, decorated with carvings and paintings)].

In Ancient Rus', special achievements belonged to jewelry, wood and stone carving. Typical types of Russian furniture were caskets, tower tables, cabinets, chests, and tables. The authors of pictorial compositions in the form of a “grass pattern” were icon painters, “banner-bearers”; they also painted chests, tables, boards for gingerbread cakes, chess, gilded rattles, etc.; decorative “carving” of the 17th century was called “Fryazhsky herbs”. Utensils, dishes, tiles, religious objects were produced in the workshops of Kiev, Novgorod, Ryazan, Moscow (Patriarchal workshops, the Silver Chamber, from the 2nd half of the 17th century - the Armory Chamber of the Moscow Kremlin), Yaroslavl, Kostroma, also in Kirillo-Belozersky, Spaso -Prilutsky, Sergiev Posad monasteries. From the 2nd half of the 17th century, the rapid development of folk crafts began in Russian decorative and applied arts (tile production, wood carving and painting, lace making and weaving, silversmithing and pottery).

During the Renaissance, artistic craft acquired a fundamentally authorial and predominantly secular character. New types of decorative and applied art are appearing, genres and techniques forgotten since ancient times are being revived. The most significant changes occur in the production of furniture (cabinets with a folding front board, a chest-bench with a back and armrests, etc.); The decoration uses a classic order and a characteristic ornament - grotesques. Silk weaving of Genoa, Florence and Milan, Venetian glass, Italian majolica, glyptics, jewelry art (B. Cellini), artistic metalworking [“lobed style” in Dutch and German silver (the Yamnitzer family)], enamels, glass and French flourished. ceramics (produced by Saint-Porcher; master B. Palissy).

Decorative and applied art of the Baroque era is characterized by a special pomp and dynamics of compositions, an organic connection between all elements and details (dishes and furniture), preference is given to voluminous, large forms. In the production of furniture (cabinets, cabinets, chests of drawers, sideboards, etc.) polished wood, gilded bronze fittings and Florentine mosaics, inlay (applied bronze, marquetry using ebony, metal, mother-of-pearl, tortoiseshell, etc.) were used. - in the products of the workshop of A. Sh. Bulya). Tapestry manufactories in Europe were influenced by Flemish carpet art (Brussels manufactories); Genoa and Venice were famous for woolen fabrics and printed velvet. Delft faience arose in imitation of Chinese. In France, the production of soft porcelain, faience (Rouen, Moustiers) and ceramics (Nevers), textiles (manufactories in Lyon), the production of mirrors, and tapestries are developing.

In the Rococo era (18th century), fragile and sophisticated asymmetrical lines predominated in the shapes and decorations of objects. In England they produce silver dishes (P. Lameri), candelabra, etc. In Germany, lush rocaille forms are found among metal products (I. M. Dinglinger). New forms of furniture are emerging - bureaus (desk-bureau, bureau-plate and bureau-cylinder), various types of tables, a soft upholstered bergere chair with a closed back, a dressing table made of 2 parts; Painted panels, marquetry, and inlay are used for decoration. New types of fabrics (moire and chenille) appear. In England, T. Chippendale made furniture in the Rococo style (chairs, tables and bookcases), using Gothic and Chinoiserie motifs. At the beginning of the 18th century, the first European porcelain manufactory was opened in Meissen (Saxony) (sculptor I. Kändler). The Chinoiserie style penetrates both European porcelain (Meissen, Chantilly, Chelsea, Derby, etc.), and Russian (Imperial Porcelain Factory near St. Petersburg), as well as textiles, glass and furniture ((French lacquers of the Martin brothers). In the 1670s, lead glass with a new composition (the so-called English crystal) appeared in England; its production technique became widespread in the Czech Republic, Germany, and France.

The decorative and applied arts of the Classical era of the 2nd half of the 18th century, and later the Empire style, were influenced by archaeological excavations in the cities of Herculaneum and Pompeii (see Pompeian style). The style created by the Adam brothers (England), which affirmed the unity of external decor and interior decoration, breathed new life into decorative and applied art, in particular into furniture (works by J. Hepwhite, T. Sheraton, T. Hope, brothers Jacob, J. A Risiner), plastic jewelry (French gilded bronze by P. F. Thomira), artistic silver (cups and dishes by P. Storr), carpets and fabrics, jewelry. Simplicity and clarity are distinguished by glass decanters from the Cork Glass Company, Baccarat vases, and crystal cascade chandeliers. In porcelain, by the end of the 18th century, Meissen gave way to the status of the main European porcelain manufacturer to French Sèvres porcelain; outstanding examples began to be created at factories in Vienna, St. Petersburg and Berlin. In England, J. Wedgwood's Etruria factory appeared, producing ceramics in imitation of antique cameos and vases. In Russia, many major architects were involved in the creation of works of decorative and applied art (A. N. Voronikhin and K. I. Rossi designed furniture and vases, M. F. Kazakov and N. A. Lvov - chandeliers).

In the Biedermeier era, works of decorative and applied art reflected the desire for a comfortable life, which led to the appearance of comfortable, simple furniture with rounded, artless shapes made from local types of wood (walnut, cherry, birch), elegant glass cut jugs and glasses with elegant paintings (works by A. Kotgasser and etc.). The period of eclecticism (mid-19th century) manifested itself in the stylistic diversity of historical styles used, as well as in the unification of approaches and artistic techniques. The inspiration for Neo-Rococo was the decoration of 18th century art; in Russia it appeared in the porcelain products of the A.G. Popov factory with its polychrome floral painting on a colored background. The revival of Gothic (neo-Gothic) was determined by the desire of artists to introduce a romantically sublime style into decorative and applied art and only indirectly reproduced truly Gothic motifs; elements of ornament were borrowed rather than forms of Gothic art (Bohemian glass by D. Beeman, works in porcelain and glass for the palace of Nicholas I “Cottage” in Peterhof). The Victorian style in England was reflected in the creation of heavy furniture and the wide distribution of its “small forms” (bookcases, umbrella holders, gaming tables, etc.). Unglazed porcelain imitating marble has become popular again. New types and techniques have appeared in glass (primarily Bohemian) - multi-layer colored “flash” glass, opaque cameo glass and black (hyalite) glass, imitating lithialyl gemstones. Since the mid-1840s, a new direction appeared in France at the glass factories of Baccarat, Saint-Louis and Clichy, and later in England, Bohemia and the USA (the creation of millefiere paperweights, etc.). The fusion of elements of various styles determined the development of furniture and the emergence of new industrial technologies and materials: forms made of laminated and bent wood (M. Thonet), papier-mâché, carved wood and cast iron.

The protest against eclecticism, initiated in Great Britain by the Arts and Crafts Society, contributed to the formation of the Art Nouveau style at the end of the 19th century; it blurred the boundaries between the decorative, applied and fine arts and took different forms in many countries. Art Nouveau decor is most often likened to ornamental motifs of natural forms; curved lines, wavy contours, asymmetrical designs were widely used (furniture by V. Horta, L. Majorelle, E. Guimard, artistic multi-layer colored glass with floral and landscape motifs by E. Galle, O. Daum, L. Tiffany, jewelry by R. Lalique ). The artists of the Vienna Secession, like the Scot C. R. Mackintosh, on the contrary, used symmetry and restrained rectilinear forms. The works of J. Hofmann, often performed together with G. Klimt (furniture, glass, metal, jewelry), are distinguished by elegance and sophistication. In European porcelain production, the leading place was occupied by works with underglaze painting from the Copenhagen Royal Manufactory. In Russian Art Nouveau, in its national-romantic branch, the neo-Russian style manifested itself - especially in the activities of the Abramtsevo art circle (works by V. M. Vasnetsov, M. A. Vrubel, E. D. Polenova), the Talashkino workshop of Princess M. K. Tenisheva, workshops of the Stroganov School.

The modern history of decorative and applied arts begins not only with the revival of handicraft (W. Morris and others), but also with the emergence at the turn of the 19th-20th centuries throughout Europe and the USA of a new type of creative activity - design and its further active development in 1920s (Bauhaus, Vkhutemas). Art Deco design became the basis of almost all home interiors, cultivating discreet luxury and comfort (geometric shapes, stylized and simplified ornamentation, exotic veneered furniture with rectilinear shapes, functional tableware and flower vases).

Russian art after 1917 developed on a new ideological and aesthetic basis.

Artists tried to use art to convey the spirit of the era (the so-called propaganda porcelain), to create a comprehensive rational environment for broad sections of the population. Since the late 1950s, in Soviet decorative and applied arts, along with the active development of the art industry (Leningrad porcelain factories, Verbilok, Dulevo porcelain factory, Konakovo faience factory, Leningrad glass factory, Gusev crystal factory, etc.) and folk crafts (Gzhel ceramics , Zhostovo painting, Skopino ceramics, Dymkovo toys, etc.; see Artistic crafts) original art has also reached a high level.

The development of decorative and applied arts in the 20th century was determined by the coexistence and interpenetration of traditional and avant-garde principles. The subtle expressive capabilities of new materials, imitation and creative citation have acquired great importance. In the era of postmodernism, a special attitude arises towards the decorative artifact as an autonomous entity, which is demonstratively “not interested” in serving a person and is alienated from him. As a result, this led to a “crisis of self-identification” in the decorative and applied arts, caused by the emergence of competition from related types of art (primarily design). However, this crisis paradoxically opens up new prospects for decorative and applied art in terms of expanding and revising its own figurative specificity, mastering new genres and materials (ceramoplastics, fiberglass, textile plastics, mini-tapestry, mosaics in wooden frames, etc.).

Lit.: Molinier E. Histoire générale des arts appliqués à industrie. R., 1896-1911. Vol. 1-5; Arkin D. The art of everyday things. Essays on the latest art industry. M., 1932; Fontanes J, de. Histoire des métiers d'art. R., 1950; Baerwald M., Mahoney T. The story of jewelry. L.; N. Y., 1960; Kagan M. About applied art. Some theoretical issues. L., 1961; Russian decorative art / Edited by A. I. Leonov. M., 1962. T. 1-3; Saltykov A. B. Selected. works. M., 1962; Barsali I. V. European enamel. L., 1964; Kenyon G. N. The glass industry of the Weald. Leicester, 1967; Cooper E. A history of pottery. L., 1972; Davis F. Continental glass: from Roman to modern times. L., 1972; Moran A. de. History of decorative and applied arts. M., 1982; Osborne N. The Oxford companion to the decorative arts. Oxf., 1985; Boucher F. A history of costume in the West. L., 1987; Nekrasova M.A. The problem of the ensemble in decorative art // The Art of the Ensemble. Artistic object. Interior. Architecture. Wednesday. M., 1988; Illustrated encyclopedia of Antiques. L., 1994; Makarov K. A. From the creative heritage. M., 1998; Materials and techniques in the decorative arts: an illustrated dictionary / Ed. by L. Trench. L., 2000.

T. L. Astrakhantseva.

Arts and crafts(from Latin decoro - decorate) - a section of decorative art that covers the creation of artistic products that have a utilitarian purpose.

Works of decorative and applied art meet several requirements: they have aesthetic quality; designed for artistic effect; used for home and interior decoration. Such products are: clothing, dress and decorative fabrics, carpets, furniture, art glass, porcelain, earthenware, jewelry and other artistic products. In the scientific literature, from the second half of the 19th century, a classification of branches of decorative and applied art was established by material (metal, ceramics, textiles, wood), by technique (carving, painting, embroidery, printed material, casting, embossing, intarsia, etc.) and according to the functional characteristics of the use of the item (furniture, dishes, toys). This classification is due important role constructive and technological principles in decorative and applied arts and its direct connection with production.

Batik, hand-painted on fabric using reserve compounds. The fabric - silk, cotton, wool, synthetic - is painted with paint corresponding to the fabric. To obtain clear boundaries at the junction of paints, a special fixative, called reserve, is used. There are several types, for example hungry and hot.

Tapestry, a lint-free wall carpet with a plot or ornamental composition, hand-woven by cross-weaving threads.

"Offer of the Heart." Arras. OK. 1410. Cluny Museum

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Thread graphics(name options: isothread, thread image, thread design), technique of obtaining an image with threads on cardboard or other solid base.

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Artistic carving:

on stone:

Acrolit is a mixed technique used in ancient sculpture, in which the naked parts of the statue were made of marble, and the clothes were made of painted or gilded wood. The body (the main hidden frame of the statue) could also be made of wood.

Glyptics is the art of carving colored and precious stones and gems. One of the most ancient arts. Also applies to jewelry.

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Artistic carving:
on wood:

One of the oldest and most widespread types of artistic woodworking, in which a pattern is applied to the product using an ax, knife, cutters, chisels, chisels and other similar tools. With the improvement of technology, wood turning and milling appeared, which greatly simplified the work of the carver. Carving is used in home decor, for decorating household utensils and furniture, for making small wooden plastics and toys.

Through threads are divided into through threads and overhead threads, and have two subtypes:

Slotted thread- (through sections are cut through with chisels and cutters). Sawed thread (actually the same thing, but such areas are cut out with a saw or jigsaw). Slotted or sawn thread with a relief ornament is called openwork.

Flat grooved thread carving is characterized by the fact that its basis is a flat background, and the carving elements go deep into it, that is, the lower level of the carved elements lies below the background level. There are several subtypes of such carvings:

Contour thread- the simplest, its only element is a groove. Such grooves create a pattern on a flat background. Depending on the chisel you choose, the groove may be semicircular or triangular.

WITH cob-shaped (nail-shaped) thread- the main element is a bracket (outwardly similar to the mark left by a fingernail when pressing on any soft material, hence the name nail-shaped) - a semicircular notch on a flat background. Many such brackets of different sizes and directions create a picture or its individual elements.

G geometric (triangular, trihedral notched) thread- has two main elements: a peg and a pyramid (a triangular pyramid buried inside). Carving is performed in two stages: pricking and trimming. First, the sectors that need to be cut are pricked (outlined) with a cutter, and then they are trimmed. Repeated use of pyramids and peg at different distances and at different angles gives a great variety geometric shapes, among which there are: rhombuses, swirls, honeycombs, chains, radiances, etc.

Black lacquer carving— the background is a flat surface covered with black varnish or paint. As in a contour carving, grooves are cut into the background, from which the design is built. The different depths of the grooves and their different profiles give an interesting play of light and shadow and the contrast of the black background and light cut grooves.

Relief carving characterized by the fact that the carving elements are located above the background or at the same level with it. As a rule, all carved panels are made using this technique. There are several subtypes of such carvings:

Flat relief carving with a cushion background - can be compared with contour carving, but all the edges of the grooves are rolled up, and sometimes with varying degrees of steepness (from the side of the drawing it is more sharp, from the side of the background it is gradually, sloping). Due to such oval contours, the background seems to be made of pillows, hence the name. The background is flush with the design.

Flat relief carving with a selected background - the same carving, but only the background is selected with chisels one level lower. The contours of the drawing also become shaved.

Abramtsevo-Kudrinskaya (Kudrinskaya)— originated in the Abramtsevo estate near Moscow, in the village of Kudrino. The author is considered to be Vasily Vornoskov. The carving is distinguished by a characteristic “curly” ornament - curling garlands of petals and flowers. The same characteristic images of birds and animals are often used. Like flat-relief, it comes with a cushion and a selected background.

Carving "Tatyanka"- this type of carving appeared in the 90s of the 20th century. The author (Shamil Sasykov) named this formed style in honor of his wife and patented it. As a rule, such carvings contain floral ornaments. A characteristic feature is the absence of a background as such - one carved element gradually merges into another or is superimposed on it, thus filling the entire space.

Artistic carving:
by bone:

Netsuke is a miniature sculpture, a work of Japanese art and craftsmanship, which is a small carved keychain.

Ceramics, clay products made under high temperature followed by cooling.

Embroidery, a well-known and widespread handicraft art of decorating various fabrics and materials with a variety of patterns, can be satin stitch, cross stitch, ancient Russian facial embroidery.

Knitting, the process of making products from continuous threads by bending them into loops and connecting the loops to each other using simple tools manually (crochet hook, knitting needles, needle) or on a special machine (mechanical knitting).

Macrame, knot weaving technique.

Jewelry Art.

(from German Juwel or Dutch juweel - precious stone), the production of artistic products (personal jewelry, household items, religious items, weapons, etc.) mainly from precious (gold, silver, platinum), as well as some precious non-ferrous metals, often in combination with precious and ornamental stones, pearls, glass, amber, mother-of-pearl, bone, etc. In jewelry, forging, casting, artistic chasing and shotting are used (giving the surface of the metal grainy and dull using chasing in the form of a blunt awl or tube ), embossing, carving or engraving, obron (a technique in which the background around the design is cut out), filigree, granulation, niello, enamels (enamel), inlay, etching, polishing, etc., mechanical processing techniques - stamping, rolling, etc. .

Artistic processing of leather.

Techniques for artistic processing of leather.

Embossing. There are several types of embossing. Used in industrial production various ways stamping, when the design on the skin is squeezed out using molds. In the manufacture of artistic products, stamping is also used, but typesetting stamps and embossing are used. Another method is embossing with filling - cutting out elements of the future relief from cardboard (lignin) or pieces of blinders and placing them under a layer of pre-moistened yuft, which is then pressed along the contour of the relief. Small details are extruded without lining due to the thickness of the leather itself. When it dries, it hardens and “remembers” the relief decor. Thermal stamping is the extrusion of decor on the surface of the leather using heated metal stamps.

Perforation or die cutting is one of the oldest techniques. Actually, it boils down to the fact that using punches of various shapes, holes are cut out in the leather, arranged in the form of an ornament.

Weaving is one of the processing methods that involves joining together several strips of leather using a special technique. Jewelry often uses macrame elements made from “cylindrical” cord. In combination with perforation, weaving is used to braid the edges of products (used for finishing clothes, shoes, bags).

Pyrography (burning) is a new technique, but with an ancient pedigree. Apparently, initially, burning into the skin was a side effect of thermal embossing, but then it was widely used as an independent technique. Using pyrography, very thin and complex drawings. It is often used in combination with engraving, painting, and embossing when creating panels, jewelry, and making souvenirs.

Engraving (carving) is used when working with heavy, dense leather. A pattern is applied to the front surface of the soaked leather using a cutter. Then the slots are widened with any oblong metal object and filled with acrylic paint. When dry, the contour drawing retains its clarity and the lines retain their thickness.

Applique in leatherworking is gluing or sewing pieces of leather onto a product. Depending on what product is being decorated, the application methods differ slightly.

Intarsia is essentially the same as inlay and mosaic: image fragments are mounted end-to-end. Intarsia is made on a textile or wooden base. Depending on this, leather grades are selected. To achieve the proper quality, accurate patterns of all fragments of the composition are made from a preliminary sketch. Then, using these patterns, elements are cut out from pre-dyed leather and glued to the base using bone glue or PVA emulsion. The intarsia technique is used mainly to create wall panels, but in combination with other techniques it can be used in the manufacture of bottles, souvenirs, and furniture decoration.

In addition, the leather can be painted, it can be molded into any shape and relief (by soaking, gluing, filling).

Artistic metal processing:

Work in Filigree technique

Casting. Gold, silver, bronze have high fusibility and are easily poured into molds. The castings follow the model well. Before casting, the master makes a model from wax. Those parts of the object that must be especially durable, such as vessel handles, handles or latches, as well as ornaments and figures, are cast in sand molds. For complex subjects multiple models are required because different parts are cast separately and then connected by soldering or screwing.

Artistic forging- one of the oldest methods of metal processing. It is carried out by striking the workpiece with a hammer. Under its impacts, the workpiece is deformed and takes the desired shape, but such deformation without ruptures and cracks is characteristic mainly only of precious metals that have sufficient ductility, viscosity, and ductility.

Embossing is a very unique, most artistic and at the same time labor-intensive production technique. Precious metals can be rolled into thin sheets, then the shape of the object takes on its shape in a cold state using accelerating hammers. Often, an artistic product is processed on a base (lead or resin pad), which is selected depending on the degree of malleability of the metal. With short and frequent blows of the hammer, with constant pressure and rotation, the metal is tapped until the desired shape is obtained. Then they move on to embossing (embossing the decor). The decor is embossed using stamps (steel rods of a certain profile). Products forged from a single piece of workpiece are the highest works of art. It is easier to work with two or more pieces of workpiece, which are then soldered together.

1. Chasing from a sheet.
2. Minting by casting or armor.
In the first case, a new work of art is created from a sheet blank by means of embossing; in the second, an artistic form that was previously cast in metal (or cut out of metal using the obrona technique) is only revealed and completed.

Metal-plastic. Artistic works made using this technique resemble sheet metal in appearance, but in essence they differ significantly, primarily in the thickness of the sheet metal.
For embossing, sheets with a thickness of 0.5 mm or more are used, and for metal-plastic, foil up to 0.5 mm is used. However, the main difference between metal-plastic is in the technological process itself and the set of tools. In embossing, the shape is formed by hitting the emboss with a hammer, and in metal-plastic, the shape is sculpted through smooth deformations carried out by special tools that resemble sculptural stacks.

Engraving is one of the oldest types of artistic metal processing. Its essence is the application of a linear pattern or relief on a material using a cutter. The technology of artistic engraving can be distinguished:
- flat engraving(two-dimensional), in which it is processed
surface only; Its purpose is to decorate the surface of a product by applying outline drawing or pattern, complex portrait, multi-figure or landscape tone compositions, as well as the execution of various inscriptions and type works. Engraving decorates both flat and three-dimensional products.
Planar engraving, also called gloss engraving or engraving for appearance, also includes niello engraving, which technologically differs from conventional engraving only in that it is carried out somewhat deeper, and then the selected design is filled with niello.
—defense engraving(three-dimensional).
Armor engraving is a method in which a relief or even a three-dimensional sculpture is created from metal. In defensive engraving, there are two options: convex (positive) engraving, when the relief pattern is higher than the background (the background is deepened, removed), in-depth (negative) engraving, when the pattern or relief is cut inward.

Etching. This is another technique related to graphics. As in etching, the object was coated with resin or wax, and then the decoration was scratched onto it. When the product was immersed in acid or alkali, the scratched areas were etched, and the surface around them, often damaged by the intervention of the tool, became dull. This created a very shallow and softly emerging relief.

Filigree is a unique type of artistic metal processing that has occupied an important place in jewelry since ancient times.
The term "filigree" is more ancient, it comes from two Latin words: “phylum” - thread and “granum” - grain. The term "scan" is of Russian origin. It originates from the ancient Slavic verb “skati” - to twist, twist. Both terms reflect the technological essence of this art. The term “filigree” combines the names of two main primary elements from which a characteristic of filigree production is produced, namely, that the wire is used in this type of art, twisted, twisted into cords.
The thinner the wire and the tighter and steeper it is twisted, the more beautiful the product, especially if this pattern is complemented by grain (tiny balls).

Enameling. Enamel is a glassy solidified mass of inorganic, mainly oxide composition, sometimes with metal additives, formed through partial or complete melting, applied to a metal base.

Decorative processing
The description of the decorative finishing of the product must contain information about the location, individual dimensions, quantity, and characteristics of the elements of artistic processing. Typical elements included in the general description are given below.
1. Matting.
2. Blackening.
3. Oxidation.
Matting
The matted, or textured, surface of products is considered to be a surface that is different from polished and carries a decorative load.
The surface texture can be finely pitted, finely lined, or matte. The effect of combined texture processing with gloss is most often used. Areas of the textured surface are obtained using the molded crust of products, a polished surface (pre-processing the working surface of the stamp with sandblasting), using etching in various acid compositions, mechanical matting (with a graver, ground pumice, brushing).
Blackening
Niello (a low-melting alloy of the composition: silver, copper, lead, sulfur) is applied to a product prepared for niello, that is, with indentations with an engraved pattern. The depth of the pattern is within 0.2-0.3 mm depending on the size of the product. The surface of the product that is not covered with niello must be polished, without marks, scratches and other defects.
Oxidation
Products made of silver and silver-plated are oxidized (treated) both chemically and electrochemically. The processes of chemical and electrochemical colorless oxidation are carried out in solutions and electrolytes, the main component of which is potassium dichromate. In the process of color oxidation, products are colored in a variety of shades: blue, black, gray, dark brown, etc. To give the films a beautiful shine, oxidized products are brushed with soft brass brushes. The oxidized surface should be uniformly matte, without differences in color shades.
Electroplating
In the jewelry industry, gold, silver, and rhodium are used as electroplating coatings. On galvanic coatings there may be slight traces of contact points with current-carrying devices, which do not disturb the coating layer and do not deteriorate the appearance of the product.

Pyrography, burning on wood, leather, fabric, etc.

Stained glass, work of decorative art of a figurative nature made of colored glass, designed for through lighting and intended to fill an opening, most often a window, in any architectural structure.

Top half of the Poor Man's Bible Window, Canterbury Cathedral, UK

Currently there are several different types stained glass depending on the manufacturing technique:

Classic (stacked or mosaic) stained glass- formed by transparent pieces of glass held in place by partitions made of lead, copper, or brass. Classic stained glass is divided into lead-soldered (assembled on a lead profile) and stained glass using Tiffany technology (assembled on a copper tape).

Lead-solder (solder) stained glass window- a classical stained glass technique that appeared in the Middle Ages and served as the basis for all other techniques. This is a stained glass window assembled from pieces of glass in a lead frame, sealed at the joints. Glass can be colored and painted with paint made from fusible glass and metal oxides, which is then fired in specially designed furnaces. The paint is firmly fused into the glass base, forming a single whole with it.

Faceted stained-glass window is a stained-glass window made of glass with a chamfer removed along the perimeter of the glass (facet, facet) or voluminous, ground and polished glass that has a cut. To obtain a wide chamfer (this enhances the effect of light refractions), thicker glass is required, which increases the weight of the stained glass window. Therefore, the finished beveled parts are assembled into a more durable (brass or copper) frame. It is better to place such a stained glass window in interior doors or furniture doors, since such a frame is able to withstand the loads of opening/closing, and the lead in this case sags. The golden hue of a copper or brass frame gives things a precious look, being visible not only in the light, but also in reflected light, which is especially important for stained glass furniture.

Painted stained glass— a design is applied to the surface of the glass using transparent paints.

Combined stained glass— is formed by a combination of various technologies for creating stained glass.

Sandblasting stained glass created using special equipment

Sintered stained glass (fusing) is a stained glass technique in which a design is created by baking multi-colored pieces of glass together or by baking foreign elements (for example, wire) into glass.

Etched stained glass- a technique based on the ability of hydrofluoric acid to interact with silicon dioxide (the main component of glass). When interacting with acid in this way, the glass is destroyed. Protective stencils make it possible to obtain a design of any complexity and required depth.

Cast Stained Glass - Each piece of glass is hand cast or blown. Glass, the thickness of which varies from 5 to 30 mm, is also given a surface texture, which, by refracting light, enhances expressiveness. Cement mortar and metal reinforcement are used to hold the glass together.

Type-setting stained glass is the simplest type of stained glass, usually without painting, which is created on a type-setting table from pieces of immediately cut or pre-cut glass.

Imitation of stained glass.

Film stained glass— lead tape and multi-colored self-adhesive film (English technology) are glued to the surface of the glass.

Contour stained glass window - a pattern is applied to the surface of the glass using acrylic polymers in two stages: the contour imitates the vein of a classic stained glass window, in the closed areas formed by applying the contour, colored elements are manually filled (English technology).

Overlay stained glass- obtained by gluing elements onto a base.

Mosaic, a work that involves the formation of an image by arranging, setting and fixing on the surface (usually on a plane) multi-colored stones, smalt, ceramic tiles and other materials.

The symbol of the soul - a bird - on a Byzantine mosaic Orthodox church 6th century. Chersonesos.

Technique. Laying methods.

When dialing directly mosaic elements are pressed into the ground. At reverse dialing The mosaic is assembled on cardboard or fabric, then transferred to a primed surface.

Laying mosaics: The technique is similar to laying tiles; glue and grout for mosaic joints are available in every hardware supermarket.

The base is examined for strength, all defects are identified - cracks, cavities, gravel nests, reinforcement or other foreign objects not included in the project, as well as problem areas, for example, oil stains, loose or insufficiently strong base, voids. The base must be strong, load-bearing, dry, and also level and free from adhesion-reducing agents (for example, additives that reduce adhesion and facilitate the dismantling of formwork), without traces of laitance, dust, dirt, paint residues, worn rubber, etc. If necessary, carry out mechanical cleaning of the base, for example, by sandblasting. Before laying the mosaic, the surface must be visually smooth, without sagging, pits and cracks, as well as dry and primed.

Laying mosaics on paper. Laying begins by applying glue to the prepared surface, after which it is evenly distributed over the entire surface. In most cases, it is recommended to use latex-based adhesives. The mosaic is glued with the back side facing the paper. Laying must be neat, so the distance between the sheets must correspond to the distance between the tiles; excessive pressure is unacceptable. Upon completion of installation, the sheets must be secured with light blows from a pad with a rubber base. After a day, the paper can be removed - moistened with a damp sponge, it comes off. Before grouting the joints, the mosaic surface must be cleaned of any remaining paper and glue, after which the grouting can be done using a rubber float. To grout joints, it is advisable to use a composition recommended by the mosaic manufacturer. Once the grouting is complete, you can clean the mosaic and polish the mosaic surface.

Laying mosaics on a grid. Unlike mosaics on paper sheets, mosaics glued to mesh are glued face up. The characteristic feature of its installation technology is that after the glue has dried, you can immediately begin grouting the joints.

In the arts and crafts, there are still many different types. Every year new technologies are discovered, there are more and more of them.

More detailed information, with visual material, can be found on the pages of well-known search engines.

Unlike faceless mass-produced products, handmade items are always unique. Masterfully crafted household utensils, clothing, and interior elements are expensive. And if in the old days such things were objects of utilitarian purpose, then in our days they have passed into the category of art. Beautiful thing made a good master, will always be in value.

In recent years, the development of applied art has received a new impetus. This trend cannot but rejoice. Beautiful dishes made of wood, metal, glass and clay, lace, textiles, jewelry, embroidery, toys - all this, after several decades of oblivion, has again become relevant, fashionable and in demand.

History of the Moscow Museum of Folk Art

In 1981, the Museum of Arts and Crafts opened in Moscow, on Delegatskaya Street. folk art. His collection consisted of unique samples of products self made domestic masters of the past, as well as the best works of contemporary artists.

In 1999, the next important event occurred - the All-Russian Museum of Decorative, Applied and Folk Art accepted exhibits from the Savva Timofeevich Morozov Museum of Folk Art into its collection. The core of this collection was formed even before the 1917 revolution. The basis for it was the exhibits of the very first Russian ethnographic museum. It was the so-called Handicraft Museum of Decorative and Applied Arts, opened in 1885.

The museum has a specialized library where you can get acquainted with rare books in theory and history of art.

Museum collection

Traditional types of decorative and applied arts are systematized and divided into departments. The main thematic areas are ceramics and porcelain, glass, jewelry and metal, bone and wood carvings, textiles, lacquer miniatures and fine materials.

The Museum of Decorative and Applied Arts has more than 120 thousand exhibits in its open fund and storage facilities. Russian modernism is represented by the works of Vrubel, Konenkov, Golovin, Andreev and Malyutin. The collection of Soviet propaganda porcelain and textiles from the second quarter of the last century is extensive.

Currently, this museum of folk arts and crafts is considered one of the most significant in the world. The most ancient exhibits of high artistic value date back to the 16th century. The museum's collection has always been actively replenished through gifts from private individuals, as well as through the efforts of senior government officials during the years of Soviet power.

Thus, the unique exhibition of textiles was created largely thanks to the generosity of French citizen P. M. Tolstoy-Miloslavsky, who donated to the museum a large collection of Russian, Eastern and European textiles collected by N. L. Shabelskaya.

Two large collections of porcelain were donated to the museum by outstanding figures of Soviet art - Leonid Osipovich Utesov and their spouses Maria Mironova and Alexander Menaker.

The Moscow Museum of Applied Arts boasts halls dedicated to the life of Russian people in different time periods. Here you can get acquainted with the homes of representatives of all classes. Furniture, dishes, clothes of peasants and city residents, and children's toys were preserved, restored and put on display. Carved decorations of platbands and roof canopies, tiled stoves, chests, which served not only as convenient storage for things, but also as beds, since they were made in appropriate sizes, conjure up pictures of the quiet, measured and well-fed life of the Russian hinterland.

Lacquer miniature

Lacquer miniature as an applied art reached its greatest flourishing in the 18th and 19th centuries. The artistic centers that gave residence to the main directions were cities famous for their icon-painting workshops. These are Palekh, Mstyora, Kholui and Fedoskino. Boxes, brooches, panels, caskets made of papier-mâché were painted with oil paints or tempera and varnished. The drawings were stylized images of animals, plants, characters from fairy tales and epics. Artists, masters of lacquer miniatures, painted icons, made custom portraits, and painted genre scenes. Each locality has developed its own style of painting, but almost all types of applied art in our country are united by such qualities as richness and brightness of colors. Detailed drawings, smooth and rounded lines - this is what distinguishes Russian miniatures. It is interesting that images of the decorative and applied arts of the past also inspire modern artists. Antique drawings are often used to create fabrics for collections fashionable clothes.

Artistic painting on wood

Khokhloma, Mezen and Gorodets paintings are recognizable not only in Russia, but also abroad. Furniture, cabinets, boxes, spoons, bowls and other household utensils made of wood, painted in one of these techniques, are considered the personification of Russia. Light wooden dishes, painted with black, red and green paints on a gold background, look massive and heavy - this is a characteristic manner of Khokhloma.

Gorodets products are distinguished by a multi-color palette of colors and somewhat less roundness of shapes than Khokhloma products. Genre scenes are used as plots, as well as all kinds of fictional and real representatives of the animal and plant world.

The decorative and applied arts of the Arkhangelsk region, in particular Mezen wood painting, are utilitarian objects decorated with special designs. Mezen craftsmen use only two colors for their work - black and red, that is, soot and ocher, fractional schematic drawings of boxes, boxes and chests, friezes in the form of borders from repeating truncated figures of horses and deer. A static, small, frequently repeated pattern evokes sensations of movement. Mezen painting is one of the most ancient. Those drawings that are used by modern artists are hieroglyphic inscriptions that were used by Slavic tribes long before the emergence of the Russian state.

Wood craftsmen, before turning any object from a solid block, treat the wood against cracking and drying out, so their products have a very long service life.

Zhostovo trays

Metal trays painted with flowers - the applied art of Zhostovo near Moscow. Once having an exclusively utilitarian purpose, Zhostovo trays have long served as interior decoration. Bright bouquets of large garden and small wildflowers on a black, green, red, blue or silver background are easily recognizable. Typical Zhostovo bouquets are now decorated with metal boxes containing tea, cookies or sweets.

Enamel

Decorative and applied art such as enamel also refers to metal painting. The most famous are the products of Rostov craftsmen. Transparent fireproof paints are applied to a copper, silver or gold plate and then fired in a kiln. Using the hot enamel technique, as enamel is also called, jewelry, dishes, weapon handles and cutlery are made. When exposed to high temperatures, paints change color, so craftsmen must understand the intricacies of handling them. Most often, floral motifs are used as subjects. The most experienced artists make miniatures of portraits of people and landscapes.

Majolica

The Moscow Museum of Applied Arts provides an opportunity to see the works of recognized masters of world painting, executed in a manner that is not entirely characteristic of them. For example, in one of the halls there is a Vrubel majolica - a fireplace “Mikula Selyaninovich and Volga”.

Majolica is a product made of red clay, painted on raw enamel and fired in a special oven at a very high temperature. In the Yaroslavl region, arts and crafts have become widespread and developed due to the large number of deposits of pure clay. Currently, in Yaroslavl schools, children are taught to work with this plastic material. Children's applied art is a second wind for ancient crafts, A New Look on folk traditions. However, this is not only a tribute national traditions. Working with clay develops fine motor skills, expands the angle of vision, and normalizes the psychosomatic state.

Gzhel

Decorative and applied art, in contrast to fine art, presupposes the utilitarian, economic use of objects created by artists. Porcelain teapots, flower and fruit vases, candlesticks, clocks, cutlery handles, plates and cups are all extremely elegant and decorative. Based on Gzhel souvenirs, prints are made on knitted and textile materials. We are used to thinking that Gzhel is a blue pattern on a white background, but initially Gzhel porcelain was multi-colored.

Embroidery

Fabric embroidery is one of the most ancient types of needlework. Initially, it was intended to decorate the clothes of the nobility, as well as fabrics intended for religious rituals. This folk decorative and applied art came to us from the countries of the East. The clothes of rich people were embroidered with colored silk, gold and silver threads, pearls, precious stones and coins. The most valuable is considered to be embroidery with small stitches, which creates the feeling of a smooth, as if a pattern drawn with paints. In Russia, embroidery quickly came into use. New techniques have appeared. In addition to the traditional satin stitch and cross stitch, they began to embroider with hemstitch stitches, that is, laying openwork paths along the voids formed by pulled out threads.

Dymkovo toys for children

IN pre-revolutionary Russia folk craft centers, in addition to utilitarian items, produced hundreds of thousands of children's toys. These were dolls, animals, dishes and furniture for children's fun, and whistles. Decorative and applied art of this direction is still very popular.

The symbol of the Vyatka land - the Dymkovo toy - has no analogues in the world. Bright colorful young ladies, gentlemen, peacocks, carousels, goats are immediately recognizable. Not a single toy is repeated. On a snow-white background, patterns in the form of circles, straight and wavy lines are drawn with red, blue, yellow, green, and gold paints. All crafts are very harmonious. They emit such powerful positive energy that anyone who picks up a toy can feel it. Maybe there is no need to place Chinese symbols of prosperity in the corners of the apartment in the form of three-legged toads, plastic red fish or money trees, but it is better to decorate the home with products of Russian craftsmen - Kargopol, Tula or Vyatka clay souvenirs, miniature wooden sculptures of Nizhny Novgorod craftsmen. It is impossible that they will not attract love, prosperity, health and well-being to the family.

Filimonovskaya toy

In the centers children's creativity In many regions of our country, children are taught to sculpt from clay and paint crafts in the manner of folk crafts of central Russia. The kids really enjoy working with such a convenient and flexible material as clay. They come up with new drawings in accordance with ancient traditions. This is how domestic applied art develops and remains in demand not only in tourist centers, but throughout the country.

Mobile exhibitions of Filimonov toys are very popular in France. They travel around the country throughout the year and are accompanied by master classes. Whistle toys are purchased by museums in Japan, Germany and other countries. This craft, which has a permanent residence in the Tula region, is about 1000 years old. Primitively made, but painted with pink and green colors, they look very cheerful. The simplified form is explained by the fact that the toys have cavities inside with holes going out. If you blow into them, alternately covering different holes, you will get a simple melody.

Pavlovo shawls

Cozy, feminine and very bright shawls from Pavlovo Posad weavers have become known throughout the world thanks to an amazing collection of fashionable clothes Russian fashion designer Vyacheslav Zaitsev. He used traditional fabrics and patterns to make women's dresses, men's shirts, other clothes and even shoes. The Pavlovo Posad scarf is an accessory that can be passed down from generation to generation, like jewelry. The durability and wear resistance of scarves is well known. They are made from high quality fine wool. The designs do not fade in the sun, do not fade from washing and do not shrink. The fringe on scarves is made by specially trained craftsmen - all the cells of the openwork mesh are tied in knots at the same distance from each other. The design represents flowers on a red, blue, white, black, green background.

Vologda lace

World-famous Vologda lace is woven using birch or juniper bobbins from cotton or linen threads. In this way, measuring tape, bedspreads, shawls and even dresses are made. Vologda lace is a narrow strip that is the main line of the pattern. The voids are filled with nets and bugs. The traditional color is white.

Applied arts does not stand still. Development and change occur constantly. It must be said that by the beginning of the last century, under the influence of developing industry, industrial manufactories equipped with high-speed electric machines appeared, and the concept of mass production arose. Folk arts and crafts began to decline. Only in the middle of the last century were traditional Russian crafts restored. In art centers such as Tula, Vladimir, Gus-Khrustalny, Arkhangelsk, Rostov, Zagorsk, etc., vocational schools were built and opened, qualified teachers were trained, and new young masters were trained.

Modern types of needlework and creativity

People travel, get acquainted with the cultures of other peoples, and learn crafts. From time to time new types of decorative and applied arts appear. For our country, scrapbooking, origami, quilling and others have become such new products.

At one time, concrete walls and fences were decorated with a variety of drawings and inscriptions made in a highly artistic manner. Graffiti, or spray art, is a modern interpretation of an ancient type of rock painting. You can laugh as much as you like at teenage hobbies, which, of course, includes graffiti, but look at photographs on the Internet or walk around your own city, and you will discover truly highly artistic works.

Scrapbooking

The design of notebooks, books and albums that exist in a single copy is called scrapbooking. In general, this activity is not entirely new. Albums designed to preserve the history of a family, city or individual for posterity have been created before. Modern vision of this art- this is a creation art books with illustrations by the authors, as well as the use of computers with various graphic, music, photo and other editors.

Quilling and origami

Quilling, translated into Russian as “paper rolling,” is used to create panels, to design postcards, photo frames, etc. The technique involves rolling thin strips of paper and gluing them to a base. The smaller the fragment, the more elegant and decorative the craft.

Origami, like quilling, is work with paper. Only origami is work with square sheets of paper from which all sorts of shapes are formed.

As a rule, all crafts related to papermaking have Chinese roots. Asian arts and crafts were originally a pastime for the nobility. The poor did not create beautiful things. Their destiny is agriculture, cattle breeding and all kinds of menial work. Europeans, having adopted the basics of the technique, which historically represented very small and delicate work with rice paper, transferred the art to conditions convenient to them.

Chinese products are distinguished by an abundance of very small details that look monolithic and very elegant. Only very experienced craftsmen can do such work. In addition, thin paper ribbons can be twisted into a tight and even coil only with the help of special tools. European lovers of handicrafts have somewhat modified and simplified the ancient Chinese craft. Paper, curled in spirals of different sizes and densities, has become a popular decoration for cardboard boxes, vases for dried flowers, frames and panels.

Speaking about decorative and applied arts, it would be unfair to ignore such crafts as silk painting, or batik, printed material, or embossing, that is, metal painting, carpet weaving, beading, macrame, knitting. Some things become a thing of the past, while others become so fashionable and popular that even industrial enterprises start producing equipment for this type of creativity.

Preserving ancient crafts and displaying the best examples in museums is a good cause that will always serve as a source of inspiration for people creative professions and will help everyone else to join in the beauty.

DECORATIVE ARTS(English decorative art, French art decorative, German Decorative Kunst), a term that unites those types of art that serve practical purposes, in contrast to easel and monumental art. Decorative arts contribute art organization in all areas of life. Decorative art includes monumental and decorative art directly related to architecture: the design of buildings or other structures (architectural decor, paintings, mosaics, stained glass, wood carvings, etc.); decorative and applied arts (furniture, fabrics, ceramics, household art products made of metal and leather); design art ( decoration showcases, exhibitions, festivals).

The decorative arts are distinguished from the fine or major fine arts, in which works, such as easel paintings, are created solely for aesthetic pleasure. However, this distinction is rather arbitrary, since the forms of art are too closely related to each other to be easily distinguished. The criteria by which a painting or sculpture is judged—shape, color, or compositional features—are the same as those used to evaluate a miniature-decorated manuscript or a porcelain vase. Although materials and techniques vary depending on the art form, the fundamental principles remain valid - such as good taste, originality of content and composition.

Up to the 19th century. no distinction was made between artist and craftsman. Since antiquity, craftsmen have not allowed an item, be it a silver cup or a painting, to leave the workshop without undergoing strict inspection by the craftsman himself or the guild for quality workmanship and artistic skill. Orders and regulations applied to everything from paintings, sculpture and architecture to carved picture frames and designs for tapestries, sewing, glass work, ornamental stone and metal. For example, the Florentine workshop of Antonio del Pollaiuolo during the Renaissance produced not only paintings, but also magnificent silk banners for ceremonial processions, as well as altar images minted on silver. Benvenuto Cellini, fellow countryman of Pollaiuolo, in the 16th century. gained fame as an excellent and original sculptor, jeweler and goldsmith. The objects made by these artists were as functional as they were beautiful, which is why many of their products became famous as works of art. Many works that are now classified as one of the types of fine art were created exclusively in decorative purposes. Among them are the marbles of the ancient Greek Parthenon, sculptures and frescoes that adorned medieval churches throughout Europe.

At the beginning of the 19th century. The paths of fine and decorative arts diverged. This was caused by the advent of the industrial revolution and rapid development Machine production, which resulted in the mass production of consumer goods, gave rise to the art industry. In the middle of the 19th century. opposition to crude and aesthetically unattractive factory products led to a revival of artistic crafts throughout Europe. The term “applied art” arose; it was used to refer to the “application” of an artistic concept to a craft. The revival of genuine artistic craft was facilitated by the activities of such masters as William Morris and Edward Burne-Jones. In 1857 they settled in London as "artists" with the aim of creating home furnishings by hand, from sketching and designing decorative motifs to fabrics and furniture.

The concept of "arts and crafts" more accurately expresses the modern point of view regarding the distinction between functional and purely decorative works than their classification as "great" or "small" art, fine or decorative. At the same time, in the middle of the 20th century. is becoming increasingly appreciated creative activity in a wide variety of materials; this again drew attention to the problem of the unity of all forms of artistic expression, and also significantly expanded the field of activity of artists and contributed to the emergence of new types of art using new materials, for example in the field of industrial

Arts and crafts is a broad section of art, covering various areas of artistic activity and focused on creating products of a utilitarian nature. The aesthetic level of such works is usually quite high. The collective term combines two types of arts - applied and decorative. The first has signs of practical application, the second is designed to decorate the human environment.

Creativity and utilitarianism

Applied art - what is it? First of all, these are objects whose characteristics are close to the artistic style, and their purpose is quite diverse. Vases, jugs, dishes or sets made of fine porcelain, as well as many other products, serve as decoration for living rooms, kitchen sets, bedrooms and children's rooms. Some objects may be works of genuine art and nevertheless belong to the category of applied art.

Wide scope of activity

Applied art - what is it from the point of view of the master? Labour intensive creative process or a simple craft made from scrap materials? Of course, this is a work of art that deserves the highest praise. The utilitarian purpose of the product does not detract from its advantages. Decorative and applied arts are a wide field of activity for artists and sculptors, designers and stylists. Exclusive works of art created in a single copy are especially valued. At the same time, mass-produced products are classified as souvenirs.

Decorations in the house

Decorative and applied art - what is it if we consider it as part of the aesthetic content of the everyday environment? It is safe to say that all products and objects located around reflect the tastes of people in close proximity to them, since a person tries to surround himself with beautiful things. Arts and crafts make it possible to decorate your home, office space, or recreation area. Particular attention is paid to the design of rooms for children.

And finally, applied art - what is it in the public’s understanding? These are exhibitions, opening days, fairs and many other public events that introduce people to culture. Fine arts and crafts increase the level of human development and contribute to the formation of his aesthetic taste. In addition, viewing the exhibitions broadens your general horizons. Each exhibition of applied art is an acquaintance of the general public with new achievements in the field of artistic creativity. Such events are of particular importance in educating the younger generation.

A little history

Folk arts and crafts originate in Russian villages. Simple crafts made by home-grown craftsmen are often classified as products in the category " folk arts"A good example of the folklore style is the so-called painted cockerels, figurines, and decorations made of red clay.

The fishery has roots in the past, it is more than four hundred years old. Ancient applied art appeared thanks to the folk holiday "Whistling", when the entire female population sculpted clay whistles for this day in the form of chickens, lambs, and horses. The party lasted two days.

Over time, the holiday lost its meaning, and folk arts continued to develop. Currently, Dymkovo artistic products are being replicated in the Vyatka Toy production association. Products are traditionally coated with white and painted with bright, rich colors.

Fine arts

Products of folk art in their original form, as a rule, become the basis for commercial projects. Fairy tale characters, invented by residents of Russian villages, are displayed in the famous Palekh boxes, Zhostovo trays, and wooden Khokhloma products. The applied art of Russia is diverse, each direction is interesting in its own way, the products of Russian masters are in high demand among foreign collectors.

“Demand creates supply” - this formulation perfectly reflects the state of affairs in the sphere of folk artistic crafts in Russia. For example, artistic products in the Gzhel style have been popular all over the world for several centuries. The famous blue and white vases, plates, teapots are coveted in every home, and especially valuable specimens are the pride of collectors. It is still unclear what applied art is - work, craft or artistic creativity. In fact, each product requires some effort to create it, and at the same time it is necessary to give the image artistic value.

Arts and crafts in the children's room

In certain cases, the theme of artistic creativity may be addressed to the younger generation. Products made by children's hands are of particular value. Spontaneity characteristic of boys and girls preschool age, naive fantasy mixed with the desire to express your innermost feelings give rise to real masterpieces. Children's applied art, represented by drawings, plasticine figures, cardboard men, is real artistic creativity. Today, competitions are held throughout Russia in which small “artists” and “sculptors” participate.

Contemporary Russian applied art

Photographs, daggerotypes, etchings, engravings, prints, as well as many other examples, are also artistic creations. Products can be very different. At the same time, they are all united by belonging to the public and cultural life under the general name - decorative and applied arts. Works in this area are distinguished by a special folklore style. It is not for nothing that all artistic crafts originated in the Russian outback, in villages and hamlets. The products display home-grown unpretentiousness and a complete absence of that pretentiousness that is sometimes found in works fine art. At the same time, the artistic level of folk art is quite high.

In Russia, arts and crafts are part of the country's economic power. Below is a list of the main areas of folk art crafts that have received worldwide recognition and are exported in industrial quantities.

1. Lacquered miniatures on a wooden base (Palekh, Mstera, Fedoskino).
2. Zhostovo art painting on metal, Limoges enamel, enamel.
3. Khokhloma, Gorodets, Mezen artistic painting on wood.
4. Gzhel, Filimonovskaya toy, Dymkovo toy - artistic painting on ceramics.

Palekh

Palekh folk art craft appeared in Russian spaces at the beginning of the 20th century. The art of lacquer painting originated in a small village in the Ivanovo province called Palekh. The craft was a continuation of icon painting, which dates back to pre-Petrine times. Later, Palekh masters participated in the painting of the Moscow Kremlin, the Novodevichy Convent, and the cathedrals of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra.

The revolution of 1917 abolished icon painting, and artists were left without work. In 1918, craftsmen created the Palekh art artel, in which wooden crafts were painted. Then the craftsmen learned to create papier-mâché boxes and paint them in miniature style, using traditional icon-painting technologies.

In 1923, lacquer miniatures were presented at the All-Russian Agricultural and Industrial Exhibition, where they received a 2nd degree diploma. And two years later, Palekh boxes were exhibited in Paris, at the World Exhibition.

The success of unusual artistic products became the impetus for the creation of the organizations “Union of Palekh Artists” and “Palekh Art Workshops” under the USSR Art Fund.

Fedoskino

Russian lacquer painting with the use of this word is associated with this word. The craft appeared in the village of Fedoskino near Moscow in the second half of the 18th century. The design was applied to papier-mâché products and then covered with several layers of varnish.

The art of Fedoskino miniatures was started by the Russian merchant P.I. Korobov, who visited the German city of Braunschweig and adopted there technologies for creating snuff boxes, beads, boxes and other products decorated with picturesque pictures.

The Fedoskino lacquer miniature is painted with oil paints in four steps: first, a sketch of the drawing ("painting") is made, then a detailed study ("painting"), glazing - coating with transparent paints, last process- glare, which conveys highlights and shadows in the image.

The Fedoskino drawing technique involves the use of an underpainting layer of reflective components: metal powder or gold leaf. In some cases, the master can make a lining from mother-of-pearl. Transparent glaze paints together with the lining create a unique deep glow effect. The colorful layer is emphasized by a black background.

Mstera

This is the name given to Russian folk craft that appeared in the mid-18th century in the Vladimir province. It all started with “petty letters” - miniature icons with the smallest details drawn. After the revolution of 1917, when there was no longer a need for icon painting, Mstera switched to caskets and boxes made of papier-mâché. The design was made by mixing egg yolks. By the middle of the 20th century, Mstera lacquer miniature technologies were finally formed.

The basic principles of drawing a drawing are to transfer the general contours from tracing paper to the surface of the product, then “opening” follows, applying the drawing directly. The next stage is detailed painting. And finally, “melt” - the final coloring with highlights, which includes created gold (fine gold powder). The finished product is coated with six layers of transparent varnish with intermediate drying, then polished.

The characteristic features of Mstera painting are carpet decorativeness, a sophisticated play of shades and three color schemes, used in coloring: yellow ocher, red and silver-blue. The theme of the drawing is classic: fairy tales, historical monuments, architecture.

Zhostovo

Zhostovo folk craft consists of metal trays painted in a special style. Zhostovo art originated at the beginning of the 19th century, in the villages of the Trinity volost, in the Moscow region. Residents of three villages (Ostashkovo, Zhostovo and Khlebnikovo) began making painted papier-mâché items. And in the workshop of the Vishnyakov brothers they began to make trays from tin with colorful designs.

The Vishnyakovs' price list included two dozen different items made of metal and papier-mâché, all of them were painted, colorfully designed and were in high demand at fairs, with a painted tray always in the foreground.

Zhostovo painting is a floral theme in several versions: a garden bouquet, flowers spread out, a garland, a wicker wreath. Field plants formed a separate composition.

Bouquets on a tray look natural due to the careful attention to detail. The most saturated color palette is used. The background is usually black, the edges of the tray are decorated with openwork patterns, floral or stylized to resemble a wood structure. The Zhostovo tray is always hand-painted and is an exclusive work of art.

Khokhloma

This name was given to a Russian folk craft that dates back to the beginning of the 17th century. Khokhloma painting the most complex and expensive of all currently existing techniques. Arts and crafts is a long creative process involving wood processing, multi-layer priming and painting with oil paints.

The process of making Khokhloma products begins with blanks. First, the craftsmen, that is, chop wooden blocks with an ax. The blanks are then processed on machines to the desired size and shape. The processed workpieces are called “linen”. After grinding, they are coated with special liquid clay and dried. Then the already primed blanks are coated with several layers of linseed oil with intermediate drying. This is followed by tinning, or rubbing aluminum powder into the surface, after which the product becomes a white-mirror color. At this stage it is already ready for painting.

The main colors of Khokhloma are black and red (soot and cinnabar), auxiliary colors: gold, brown, light green and yellow. The brushes used are very thin (made exclusively from squirrel tails), since the strokes are applied with a barely noticeable touch.

The thematic content of the drawing is rowan berries, viburnum, strawberries, small foliage, thin, slightly curved green stems. Everything is drawn in bright, intense colors, the contours are clearly defined. The image is built on the principle of contrast.

Gzhel

This is the most popular folk craft, a traditional Russian center of production artistic ceramics. Occupies a vast region consisting of 27 villages, under the general name Gzhel bush, 60 kilometers from Moscow.

From time immemorial, the Gzhel region was famous for its deposits of high-grade clay, suitable for apothecary vessels. In 1770, the Gzhel volost lands were assigned to the Pharmacy Order. At the same time, the production of bricks, pottery pipes, stove tiles and children's toys for Moscow.

Dishes made from Gzhel clay were especially good, light and durable. At the beginning of the 19th century, there were 25 factories producing tableware in the parish. The proximity of Moscow stimulated the development of the production of clay products; countless bowls, plates, dishes and other kitchen utensils were sold at the capital's fairs.

Gzhel toys at that time were made from waste from tableware production. No matter how much clay was left, all of it was used to sculpt cockerels, chickens, lambs and goats. Initially, handicraft workshops worked chaotically, but soon a definite line in production emerged. Raw materials began to be prepared specifically for souvenir products, craftsmen also specialized in the profile of the most popular products.

White shiny horses and figurines were painted in different colors until cobalt, a universal paint, appeared. The intense bright blue color matched the snow-white enamel of the workpiece perfectly. In the 50s of the last century, artists completely abandoned all other colors and began to use glazed cobalt blue coloring. The motives for the drawing could be very different, on any topic.

Other crafts

The range of Russian folk arts and crafts and decorative arts is unusually wide. Here you can find artistic Kasli casting and embossing with interspersed elements. Intarsia and marquetry technologies allow you to create magnificent paintings and panels. Russian applied art is a vast cultural layer of the country, a treasure of society.