Zhostovo painting is a Russian folk craft, which consists in painting metal trays, invented in the village of Zhostovo, Moscow Region.

What do foreign tourists bring from Russia? What souvenirs do they prefer? Among the traditional items of Russian folk crafts, these are the works of Zhoskov craftsmen - painted metal trays. Zhostovo painting is a Russian folk craft, which consists in painting metal trays, invented in the village of Zhostovo, Moscow Region.

The history of the emergence of painting on metal trays.

The painting of metal trays appeared in the middle of the 18th century in the Urals, where metallurgical factories were located, and only in the first half of the 19th century the craft became popular and migrated to the villages of the Moscow region - Zhostovo, Troitskoye and others. In a short time, the Zhostovo painting became the leading one. Nowadays, the production of trays with this painting is concentrated in the village of Zhostovo and in Nizhny Tagil.

The history of the Zhostovo craft dates back to the beginning of the 19th century, when workshops for the production of painted lacquerware from papier-mâché arose in several villages near Moscow - Zhostovo, Ostashkov, Khlebnikov and others.

In 1825, the miniaturist O.F. Vishnyakov, the son of the owner of a Moscow factory for the manufacture of metal painted trays, founded a workshop in Zhostovo, where they created trays with subject and flower painting. The Vishnyakovs 'price list read: “The Vishnyakov brothers' establishment of varnished metal trays, rusks, pallets, papier-mâché boxes, cigarette cases, tea-cases, albums, and so on. exists since 1825 ". In 1922, in the village of Novoseltsevo, the “Novoseltsevskaya Labor Artel” was established to produce lacquered iron trays; in 1924, the Zhostovo Labor Artel and Spetskustar were organized in the villages; in 1925 - "Varnisher" and at the same time in the village of Troitskoye - artel "Svoy Trud" for painting trays. All of them were united in 1928 into a specialized artel "Metallopodnos" with a center in the village of Zhostovo.

The 1920s - 1930s were difficult years in the history of Zhostovo. The tendencies of the straightforward affirmation of modernity and realism common for Soviet art led to the fact that organizations in charge of folk crafts tried to change the traditional direction of their development and introduced into Zhostovo painting samples of ornamental and thematic compositions created by professional artists without taking into account the specifics of local art and bearing the features of easel painting and naturalism. Leading artists understood the alienness of such innovations of the very essence of folk art, were able to resist them and direct new ideas to deepen traditional craftsmanship. In the 1960s, a new stage began in the history of Zhostovo, which continues to this day.

Features of the production and painting of Zhostovo trays

The main feature of the Zhostkovo painting is a flower bouquet, mainly on a black or red background. Other colors are much less common. The traditional feature of the painting is the improvisational performance of each individual composition. The artist does not paint from nature and not according to samples, but focusing on his imagination and compositional techniques, so there are no two identical trays. There are several established types of compositions. Flowers can be arranged in garlands around the perimeter of the tray, collected in bouquets of three or five flowers, depicted in baskets. Flowers often accompany images of fruits, berries or birds.

Another feature of the production of Zhostovo trays is the use of thin roofing steel: the sheets are stamped, then the trays are rolled to stiffen the sides. After that, the trays are primed, polished and several times covered with an oil varnish, usually black, with each layer drying in an oven. Then the craftsmen paint the trays by hand with oil paints without the use of stencils and samples, relying on their own imagination.

Painting is usually done on a black background (sometimes on red, blue, green, silver) and the master works on several trays at once. The ornamental pattern is applied with “melted” gold (gold powder diluted in transparent varnish or turpentine) or gulfarba (white paint with varnish), which is sprinkled with aluminum powder. The main motive of the painting is a floral bouquet of a simple composition, in which large garden flowers and small wildflowers alternate. At first, the paint is applied (the main silhouettes of the bouquet), then the straightening: shadows are applied, light places are prescribed, dense strokes, glare are applied, thin lines are veins of leaves, stamens, and then large flowers are associated with smaller elements of the pattern with herbs, stems, etc. ., in the last turn, the ornament located on the sides is applied (so-called cleaning).

After painting, the Zhostovo products are again three times covered with colorless varnish, dried in an oven and polished with a fine powder by hand to a mirror finish.

Throughout its history, Zhostovo trays from household items have become independent decorative items, and the craft has acquired the status of a unique type of Russian folk art. Currently, the production of trays with lacquer painting is concentrated in the village of Zhostovo, Moscow Region, and in Nizhny Tagil.

In all corners of the world, in all souvenir shops and shops where items of Russian folk art are exhibited, there is always a place for Zhostovo painting. A product of the Russian folk craft of painting metal trays. Its bright, colorful appearance will tell a foreigner that Russia is not a gray and dull country, but that our compatriots will be proud of their Motherland.

"Painting a tray with a Zhostovo pattern" Master - class with step by step photos.

Kolomytseva Raisa Vladimirovna educator at the Raduga MBDOU in the village of Tatsinskaya, Rostov Region.
Intended for older preschoolers, schoolchildren, teachers, parents, educators, for everyone who likes to practice folk - applied art.
Target: Acquaintance with the features of the painting of the Zhostovo trade.
Tasks:
- To master the basic techniques of Zhostovo writing in the process of performing creative work.
- Development of a sense of composition, the ability to beautifully place a pattern on a given silhouette.
- To develop creative thinking, imagination, attention, memory, interest in folk crafts.
- Using this type of work as a source that brings joy not only to the child, but also to the people around him.

A bit of history.
The history of the origin of this painting begins with the village of Zhostovo, which is located not far from Moscow. There are other villages, but everyone knows about Zhostov, they have heard a lot about him abroad. Trays became in demand when the tea drink appeared, and before that there were mead, sbiten, primordially Russian drinks. There was also a ritual - tea drinking. For a long time, trays were made from papier-mâché, but in wealthy houses metal trays were used. But the technology does not stand still and metal trays began to be made everywhere, whole tray workshops began to open. The variety of shapes and sizes amazed the imagination - these were six - octagonal, rectangular, oval and square, round and even triangular trays for corner tables.
Much time has passed since then, but this craft is not forgotten and flourishes, it lives a full life. Of course, the manufacturing technology has improved, science does not stand still, but the feeling of celebration and joy from the work of the master has been preserved. The bouquet consists of simple, unpretentious flowers, but how pleasing it is when you look at the tray.
It is very pleasant to receive a tray with a wonderful Zhostovo bouquet as a gift!

Materials:
-Paints gouache
- Brushes # 1, # 3
- Tray silhouette cut from cardboard.
- A glass for water.

Working process.

Like a house is built of bricks, a sentence is made of words, words are made of letters - in the same way, bouquets are made of flowers, flowers are made of petals, and petals are made of brush strokes.
To begin with, let's think over the composition of the future pattern well, since we will draw immediately with a brush. We do the overlay - we apply the silhouettes of flowers and leaves. To make the flower even and beautiful, mentally draw a line of balance and apply the petals in sequence. Use brush # 3, then on smaller details use brush # 1. We place large flowers in the center of the bouquet, they are surrounded by smaller flowers, and small flowers and leaves are located at the edges.

Now we make shadows - this is we apply colored shadows with the help of which we indicate the volume and shadow places of our bouquet.

Then we clarify and highlight many details and get a more contrasting look - this stage is called pad.

Now let's get down to it glare, this stage is called glare. The mood and special flavor of our bouquet is created.

Well, let's finish our creation blueprint- Apply small, but very significant strokes with a thin brush. We draw veins and lace edges on the leaves, in the center of the flowers we mark "seeds".

The work is over with the bouquet, but now we use the technique binding- this is when our bouquet seems to get used to the background with the help of thin blades of grass, stalks and all this, as it were, connects and echoes together. The arrangement of blades of grass and stems gives lightness and splendor to the pattern. Only after such a binding does the tray become not just a tray, but a Zhostovo one.
Let's take care of the tray itself - we will decorate the sides. This technique is called cleaning, the pattern can be modest, or it can be luxurious.
You can make a papier-mâché tray, coat it with several coats of paint, and start painting.

Folk crafts are the glory of Russia. They are the soul of the people, their desire for aesthetics and harmony. In works of decorative and applied folk art - is ...

From Masterweb

24.04.2018 00:01

The decorative and applied art of the peoples of Russia is a visiting card of our country. Among the folk crafts, the Zhostovo painting occupies a special place, striking with the freshness of flower arrangements, as well as the purity and tenderness of the colors.

Development area

Zhostovo painting got its name from the place of origin and production. Metal trays, painted with flower arrangements, originated in the Moscow region. The village of Zhostovo near Mytishchi became their homeland.

The predecessors of the Zhostovo painting were paintings on trays, which arose in the middle of the 18th century in the Urals, not far from the location of the famous Demidov factories. Only in the first quarter of the 19th century, the former serfs, the Vishnyakov brothers who had bought out of dependence, who had accumulated a small amount of capital, opened their workshop in the village of Zhostovo. And a little later, the craft began to develop in other villages near Moscow. Gradually the Zhostovo workshop became the leading one in the craft.

The Vishnyakovs were miniaturist painters, and therefore painted not only trays, but also boxes, cigarette cases, caddies, albums and other household items. Osip Vishnyakov went to sell the goods in Moscow and gradually saved up money, with which he was able to rent a shop on Tsvetnoy Boulevard. The special demand for the Vishnyakov trays arose with the spread of the traditions of tea drinking in Russia. They were used as pallets for samovars.

At the beginning of the 20th century, interest in folk crafts declined, and therefore, at the end of the 30s, scattered artels in neighboring villages and in Zhostovo had to unite. As a result, a whole factory was opened for decorative painting of metal trays - "Metal Podnos". And since 1960, the Zhostovo Factory of Decorative Painting has seen the light of day.

Stages of product creation

From the beginning to the end of the manufacture of the product, the process of creating the Zhostovo painting goes through a number of stages:

1. Making a tray oval, octagonal, round, rectangular or combined.
2. Priming the surface of the workpiece.
3. Putty of unevenness.
4. Smoothing the surface of the base to a smooth state.
5. Coating with varnish.
6. Painting with oil paints.
7. Two-layer coating of the product with transparent varnish.

Features of the manufacture of the base

Typically, the base tray is forged by hand from sheet iron, for which good quality roofing steel is used. The sheets are first stamped and then rolled to keep the beads firm. In the production of standard-shaped trays, large iron sheets are cut into pieces of the required shape and size. Then, on an electric press, the tray is "cut" and "pulled out". With the help of molds and a combined stamp, the sides of the future tray are formed. This process is called "flanging" or "rolling".

Stage-by-stage painting of the Zhostovo tray

Here's how it goes:

1. At the priming stage, a background is selected and applied - the color of the tray. Usually it is black, but there are products with a blue, red, green background. Oil varnish is traditionally used to create a black background. The secret of the varnish is lost, but its base is known - a palm resin from Africa called copal. Thanks to the special varnish composition, the trays were extremely durable. According to the old masters of Zhostovo painting, their products are not afraid of frost or heat and can only be compared with Chinese ones. At the time, this comparison assumed the highest quality of the product.
2. At the second stage of the Zhostovo painting, an overlay is created - the general silhouettes of the drawing are made with diluted paint and fired in a special oven for several hours. For painting and background, the masters use ordinary oil paint diluted with linseed oil or turpentine, and a wide brush. When the artist writes out his bouquet, he usually rotates the tray, placing the brush under the desired area.
3. Shadow shadow is a stage at which shadows are also applied with thinned paint to the silhouettes to create the primary volume.
4. The laying stage is the most important in painting. It is here that the drawing is given volume, accents and highlights are applied using the whitewash method. Details are being clarified.
5. At the stage of glare, light glares are applied, the image appears to be illuminated from different sides by several light sources.
6. At the drawing stage, with a very thin brush using black paint, important small elements of the drawing are made: denticles along the edges of the leaf, its veins, seeds in the center of the flower.
7. The anchoring stage is necessary for attaching the picture to the base, background. This is done by drawing connecting elements: antennae, twigs, etc.
8. The last stage - cleaning - is designed to decorate the sides of the tray. The ornament is applied with gold powder diluted in transparent varnish or turpentine. This powder is called "melted" gold. Or painted with white paint mixed with varnish - gulfabra. Sprinkle the gulfabra on top with aluminum powder. Sometimes the sides are painted with the so-called wreath - an ornament with the inclusion of flowers.

The complexity of the Zhostovo painting lies in the fact that the applied drawing does not allow any corrections and is done immediately and with great precision. Each craftsman uses his own special techniques in creating a product. He writes not from nature, not according to pre-worked samples, but on a whim. Fantasy and imagination make each piece unique and unique. As a rule, the master creates several products at the same time.

Zhostov's motives

Zhostovo trays are very elegant and festive. For centuries, a circle of themes and motives of painting has been formed very vividly and figuratively reflects the traditions and soul of the Russian people.

The main motives of the Zhostovo painting are:

1. Bouquets of garden and meadow flowers.
2. Plant motives.
3. Floral ornaments.
4. Flowerpots.
5. Fairy lights.
6. Scenes of folk festivals.
7. Landscapes.
8. Still lifes.
9. Scenes of folk life.
10. Scenes of folk weddings.
11. Scenes with tea drinking.

The most popular image is a troika of horses racing at full speed, harnessed to a sleigh and surrounded by flowers.

Studying the content of the plots and samples of paintings, you can learn a lot about the history and life of the Russian people. It is interesting that during the Great Patriotic War all the metal in the country was used for the manufacture of weapons. Therefore, the Zhostovo craftsmen painted cans of canned food, children's metal buckets. Toy buckets were also melted down and made into a base for trays.

Bouquet compositions. Compilation principles

Bouquets in Russian Zhostovo painting decorate the centerpiece, or the middle part of the tray, its bottom. Usually, the basis of the bouquet is made up of 3-4 large garden flowers: peony, dahlia, rose, tulip, etc. Small field and garden flowers and buds are "injected" into the canvas of the bouquet: pansies, forget-me-nots, etc. They are tied together by flexible stems and twigs with leaves - the so-called "grass". On special occasions, bouquets include fruits and berries, decorate them with birds and butterflies. As a rule, one or more large flowers are located in the center of the composition. According to the Zhostovo tradition, large flowers always have a pink glow.

Small buds become very pale, and against their background large bright inflorescences stand out in relief from the plane of the dish. Squirrel brushes are used to draw flowers. They are chosen very carefully, since hairs cannot be trimmed.

The margins or sides of the tray are also painted. But bouquet elements are not used in their design. Traditionally, the field is decorated with a golden floral ornament in the form of intricate interweaving of stems and leaves - the so-called "grass".

According to the tradition that came to Zhostovo art from Fedoskino's paintings, the background or individual elements can be covered with mother-of-pearl. Such products look very sophisticated. Elements of Gzhel and Khokhloma in the Zhostovo painting can also be found, for example, "grass".

Zhostov's business cards

Zhostovo trays are one of the trademarks of the trade. In order for the main pattern to protrude from the depth, reminding us of the reverse perspective, the masters prescribe subtle small inflorescences around.

The second business card is the sign on the tray: an image of the artist's palette, a tulip and a paintbrush. This is a long-standing, historically established brand of workshops. The master leaves his autograph next to the mark or in the mark itself. Such a mark began to be allowed only after 1970, and in the old days only a stamp was put on the products with the signature of the owner of the factory.

Another amazing business card of the Zhostovo craft is the so-called "smoked" trays, painted with a remarkable pattern that resembles a cracked surface. This painting technique is called "under the turtle". Why smoked? Because the trays are actually smoked on a candle flame. These are the most rare items of Zhostovo craftsmen. It is known that two of these trays were in the collection of the Russian writer Leo Tolstoy.

Zhostovo trays in modern life

In the modern world, folk crafts, including Zhostovo, occupy a special place. The range of their areas of use is quite wide: from interior decor elements to elite table setting. In the house or on the dining table, the Zhostovo tray is a bright, elegant accent that gives the atmosphere a positive and joyful mood.

Traditionally, Zhostovo trays can be divided into two main groups: for household use (for samovars, fruits, food, etc.) and for decoration. In everyday life, people lack beauty and aesthetics, environmental problems and problems of lack of communication with nature support the desire to compensate for the shortage at the expense of elements of nature in the works that surround us in everyday life. A special attraction of people is noticed for products decorated with the image of flowers. Apparently, therefore, the fashion for such dishes remains consistently high. Designers use the motives of the Zhostovo painting in the creation of furniture, clothing, and jewelry.

Problems of modern Zhostovo fishing

With all the interest of residents and guests of Russia in folk art of Zhostovo, it should be noted that artists have enough problems. The most urgent problem is the falsification of products, sometimes in violation of traditional technologies. Faking imitation of the author's style, plagiarists try to cash in on customers by selling low-quality and non-author's, which means, not a unique product. The quality of such items is extremely low, and the images are primitive and are not included in the "golden fund" of Zhostovo painting compositions.

Learn and teach

How do you learn to create products in the style of Zhostovo painting yourself? It is not difficult, you only need desire, mood and patience. Initially, you need to stock up on the necessary materials and equipment. Now in hardware stores and supermarkets you can find trays, sugar bowls and other household items that are not decorated and may well serve as a basis for painting. And in art stores, you can buy squirrel brushes of various sizes and oil paints, as well as the necessary solvents. How to draw a Zhostovo painting and teach it to children? Let's try to figure it out.

The art of Khokhloma and Zhostovo painting is taught to children in the senior and preparatory groups of the kindergarten. This work is not difficult. How do the guys study? A phased Zhostovo painting for children begins with a sketch of a future flower in pencil. The sketch is in the shape of a circle. This blank is for dahlia. The technique used to paint a dahlia flower with paints is called a "double stroke". Two colors are selected. Light paint is drawn on the brush, and darker paint on the tip of the brush. Strokes are applied along the edge of the circle and are performed in a specific sequence. This usually happens from top to bottom and right to left. The second row is performed in the same way, and its petals, as it were, slightly overlap the lower part of the petals of the upper row. Then the middle of the inflorescence is filled in the same way.

The stage-by-stage drawing of the Zhostovo chamomile painting resembles drawing the head of a dahlia, and at the same time, the "double brushstroke" technique is also used. With the only difference that the core is drawn first, and the petals are drawn to it in a certain sequence in one row: strictly from above, below, left, right, then the gaps between them are filled evenly.

To draw a clover flower, you must first draw a circle with light pink paint, and then apply strokes of a darker shade, such as fuchsia, inside the circle by dabbing from bottom to top in a fan arrangement. Using also adhesion, the leaves of the cup under the flower are depicted in green.

After drawing the central buds, the stage of the image begins around the smaller flowers. For painting, for example, forget-me-nots, you can use cotton swabs instead of a brush. They are also depicted using the adhesion technique, but with an end face. A small white dot is placed in the blue circle of the petal with a thin brush. By the way, children are not allowed to use oil paints. They paint with gouache.

Next comes the stage of drawing "grass". The leaves of the stems are also depicted with a double stroke. But their curved ends and curved stems are made by gently twisting the brush counterclockwise. When depicting elongated curved leaves, strokes and twisting can be alternated so that a "zigzag" is obtained. When depicting more round leaves, use the "comma" technique.

Recently, interactive classes and master classes on Zhostovo painting have been held both in Zhostovo itself and in many additional education centers for both children and adults. If there is a desire, then nothing is impossible!

Kievyan street, 16 0016 Armenia, Yerevan +374 11 233 255

This type of painting, named after a village near Moscow, is known all over the world. Even people who are far from art will unmistakably distinguish the Zhostovo tray in the variety of folk crafts. Bouquets of flowers, berries and fruits, like an explosion, appear from a dark background, shimmer with many colors and are about to disappear. Capturing this wonderful moment and capturing it with soft brushes and paints - this is the skill of the artist.

You can see pictures with samples of painting in our gallery, a master class that will tell you how to draw a Zhostovo pattern in stages - in the article below, for preschoolers, light patterns and a stencil for outlining with a pencil can be found on the Internet.

A painted tray stops the eye for a long time, forcing one to examine each petal, trace the bends of twigs and grass, guess graceful figures of birds among the flowers. You can endlessly watch the work of the painter: the movements of his hand are precise and dexterous, and from under an obedient brush, buds instantly bloom. It seems that the Zhostovo painting of the trays is not difficult. And this really would be so if the work had not been preceded by years of training and skill development.

A step-by-step description of the work on the painting will help to get involved in the work of the Zhostovites. Perhaps, in some of the steps, the main secret of mastery is hidden?

Trays of common shapes (round and rectangular) are made from sheet iron using machine tools. Sheets are cut, are pressed, then the sides are squeezed out onto them and the sharp edge is carefully bent. When creating unique forms, the manual labor of a farrier is used - a blacksmith working with cold metal.

The finished trays are sent to the grinding and primer workshop, where they are covered with several layers of primer and dried. The soil gives the background color, most often it is black. Red or green backgrounds look very ceremonious.

Finally , the tray ends up in the coloring shop... The artist does not have a sample, the Zhostovo bouquet is created only by imagination.

The next stage is ornamentation or "cleaning". An ornament is applied along the sides with a thin brush, which completes the composition. This is done by another master, whose hand is accustomed to fine and precise work.

Finally, the tray is sent to be coated with several coats of special varnish. As a result, it becomes smooth and shiny.

Gallery: flowers from Zhostovo (25 photos)

Sign painting for children and adults

Having torn the child away from the computer, it is necessary to immediately offer him another absorbing activity. Coloring trays, warmed up by looking at photographs of finished products, can captivate both a child and an adult drawing lover for a long time.

Making a tray at home is, of course, difficult. But to master the technique of Zhostovo painting and get pleasure from creativity is available to everyone. Bright pattern will decorate the cutting board, wooden dishes, Christmas ball or Easter egg. But you should start with training - drawing on paper.

The Zhostovo painting, a coloring book produced by the book industry, can also be used to educate preschoolers. The contours here are already collected according to the laws of composition or represent individual elements. But you should not get carried away with it: the principles of coloring contradict the free spirit of the Zhostovo pattern.

Materials and preparation

Train the skills of each step of the work It will take a long time to paint, so at first the child can use watercolors, gouache and ordinary sketchbooks. Later they move on to the silhouettes of trays, cut out of black cardboard.

When the basic elements are mastered, you can purchase a cutting board or papier-mâché molds on which the drawing will be applied. They are bought in art salons or made on their own. At the factory in Zhostovo, including via the Internet, you can buy blank trays for painting. A less expensive purchase will be an ordinary galvanized bucket or basin. Fear of spoiling expensive products will increase the responsibility of the novice artist before each stroke.

Wooden and paper products are primed with special compounds, choosing the background color. Metal objects are degreased, cleaned and primed for metal (it is convenient to use black or red aerosols). Used items are especially carefully cleaned, since the Zhostovo painting requires a perfectly smooth surface.

Oil paints are used for work, they are advised to be mixed with glossy varnishes in order to achieve an expressive image. It is enough to buy basic colors:

• kraplak red;
• cobalt blue;
• burnt bone;
• light ocher;
• emerald greens;
• titanium white.

Inexpensive kits are suitable for training, but you should be aware that the properties of oil paints vary greatly depending on the composition. You will need linseed oil or turpentine to dilute the paint.

The arrangement of the Zhostovo flowers on a household item should correspond to the shape of the decorated vessel. On a board or bucket you can depict a bouquet, and on the sides of a bowl or plate - an endless garland of flowers.

Zhostovo painting is multi-layered. Overlaying layers of paint from dark to light creates volume and bulge in the picture. Of course, each layer is applied after the previous one has completely dried.

First, you should master the main stages of creating an image:

When analyzing finished products, you need to pay attention to the composition, basic forms and try to reproduce them. in the form of color spots... It is not recommended to sketch in pencil, snapping to lines will only damage the work of the imagination.

Elements of Zhostovo painting

Teaching should start with simple, single strokes (leaflet). By connecting three leaves, a "trefoil" is obtained. Two green strokes and one red brush make up the bud. The bud is planted on a stalk and surrounded by leaves - a "twig" is obtained.

In the next lesson master wide strokes, of which large flowers (roses and dahlias), medium (poppies, bells, pansies) are made.

There is no task to reproduce the flower exactly: the image of plants on the Zhostovo tray is creative, fantasy and only distantly resembles nature.

Training and application

Noticing the child's passion for drawing, you can send him to special courses in Zhostovo painting for children. The best of them, including for adults, are held in Zhostovo itself. The field of application of knowledge is quite wide. In addition to traditional trays, they paint fabrics, nails, cars in the Zhostovo style, create fashionable designs for kitchen furniture and walls.

Folk crafts associated with images of flowering plants symbolize eternal life, resurrection, love and joy. Any dream or wish can be expressed with the elements of the painting. Who received the Zhostovo bouquet the artist will only have to unravel the message written in such an unusual, vivid letter.

Zhostovo painting is a Russian art craft. Since 1825, craftsmen have decorated wooden and metal trays in a special way, creating complex floral arrangements.

Fishing history

The craft originated in the middle of the 18th century in the Urals, where the largest number of metallurgical plants was concentrated. In the 19th century, trays were actively produced in the villages of the Moscow province - Zhostovo and Novoseltsevo. In a short time, the local craft has become just colossal in popularity.

Starting in 1920, quite powerful labor artels began to form in different towns. However, ten years later, folk crafts tried to supplant Soviet ideas, which presuppose the assertion of realism.

Only in 1960. artistic painting regained its impressive authority. Leading masters created not only bright and original compositions, but also won over with a special flavor and genuine exclusivity.

Colors of Zhostovo painting

The classic presentation of the picture assumes the presence of a black or red background. More progressive modern concepts also allow the use of delicate pastel canvases to create a rich multi-flowered composition.

The Zhostovo factory produces products with a red, blue, green or light blue background. One of the most popular shades is ivory. Less common are "gold" and "aggressive" red canvases.

Canvases with a mother-of-pearl coating look especially exquisite. Overflows can "decorate" both the entire background and individual accents of the composition. Mother-of-pearl inlay was originally used in Fedoskino.

Primary colors

The color palette used by the masters of the Zhostovo artistic profile is more than varied and rich. For the background, the following colors are preferred:

1. Black(#000000);
2. Ivory or wheat(# F5DEB3);
3. Red(# FF0000);
4. Blue(# 00BFFF);
5. Azure(# 007FFF);
6. Yellow(# FFBA00);
7. Burgundy(#900020);
8. Gold(# FFD700);
9. Amber(# FFBF00);
10. Brown(# 964B00).

To create the drawing itself, you can use absolutely any color. Improvisation with tones and semitones is encouraged.

Elements and patterns of Zhostovo painting

Most often, Zhostovo artists perform simple flower arrangements in the form of bouquets. The pattern is formed from harmoniously connected small flowers and large showy inflorescences, unblown buds and green foliage.

Popular flowers: rose, aster, peony, tulips, dahlias, complemented by thin leaves, buds and stems with small twigs. In addition to garden compositions, artists often depict modest violets, cute lilies of the valley, touching pansies or bindweed.

Along with traditional lilies, immortelles, thyme and chamomile, artists loved to depict completely unprecedented outlandish flowers that do not exist in nature. Especially rich bouquets are complemented by fruits and berries. Sometimes in the center or in the background, butterflies and birds can be depicted.

(Zhostovo painting with a plot picture)

In addition to flower arrangements, the Zhostovo masters sometimes drew plot pictures. These are scenes from the life of ordinary people, various landscapes, luxurious landscape compositions. A popular motif is a troika of horses surrounded by flowers.

The main feature of the painting is the improvisational approach to any drawings. Artists are not at all obliged to create according to strict templates and images, to follow special schemes or nature. Considering the amazing variety of artistic techniques, improvisation base and creative approach, each drawing is truly unique and inimitable.

Execution technique

Traditional painting involves the use of exclusively black linen. For fishing, trays made of metal and wood of various shapes were used: from standard rectangular to complex combined ones.

Let's consider the whole process in stages:

Primer

At the stage of primary priming, the products are treated with a special putty material and sanded. Right now, the master is choosing the background for the base, which then cannot be changed.

Zamaleok

This is the basis of the ornament. With the help of diluted paint, the master forms the silhouettes of all the elements that will be present in the drawing. At this stage, the improvisational component is almost completely absent, and the basis for the future ornament is set strictly according to a previously thought out scheme.

Tenezhka

Shadow shading allows you to make a translucent composition more realistic. Distinct shadows, "highlights" of light and midtones appear. Flowers become voluminous, leaves and stems look more natural.

pad

This is the most crucial stage. The lining layer allows you to give the bouquet the utmost degree of realism, which distinguishes the Zhostovo painting from other artistic crafts. The artist's task is to "clarify" the details, to highlight individual areas. The master sets the tone of contrast or "evens out" the composition through harmonious transitions.

Blikovka

Light and volume are lined up by superimposing highlights. The bouquet, as if it falls under the rays of the sun, begins to glow and shine. Now the composition has a special flavor and mood.

Blueprint

This is a very interesting stage. The task of the master is that with the help of a thin brush and a minimum amount, each element of the picture is drawn, adding realism to it. Seeds appear on the berries, pistils and stamens appear in the flower cups, leaves, grass and stems become voluminous and believable due to lace additions and other complex accents.

(The main stages of painting on a pictorial drawing)

And then...

Binding

At this stage, a complex composition must be "implanted" into the background. For this, the master uses thin stems of "grass", tendrils, ornate elements that add even more volume to the canvas and make the whole composition whole and complete.

To make the product look finished, and the style is fully consistent with generally accepted canons, craftsmen resort to "cleaning". This is the decoration of the side of the tray with various geometric lines, floral patterns, flower wreaths. The edging can be very modest, only slightly emphasizing the frame, and very rich, not inferior in its magnificence to the central figures of the composition.