Russian Lacquer Boxes
What are Russian Lacquer Boxes?
Russian Lacquer Boxes represent the highest level of miniature decoration in a craft. Each papier-mâché box is designed, hand painted, hand enameled and personally signed by one of the many artists. Sometimes a magnifying glass is utilized for some of the extremely fine details, using a single hair or a very fine brush. Originally, used to store snuff, a type of smokeless tobacco, these boxes have changed over time. They are now considered works of art and the product is an inspired, individual, unique creation. The boxes come in various sizes and shapes and can be rectangular, square, round, cylindrical, or completely unique, ie. violin case, or cabinet styles. These works of art are used to store various items from nick-knacks to our personal favorite jewelry!
Who makes them and where are they made?
The art of miniature painting on paper-mace articles originated in Russia in the late 18th century in the village of Danilkovo, not far from Moscow. It was then adopted in the neighboring village of Fedoskino. Today, skilled artisans residing in four villages, Palekh, Fedoskino, Kholui, and Mstera located approximately 300 kilometers from Moscow, create these miniature, hand-painted decorations.
True Artistry and Craftsmanship
The final step before lacquering, and maybe the most important, is the painting of the graphic ornament which forms a border around the box or on the top edges. In the caseons of some of the more intricate and special boxes, there are borders on both tops and sides. Pure gold leaf is used to paint these borders. A world of complex and rich artistic images unfold before our eyes when we look at the paintings on Russian Lacquer Boxes. Most of the artists produce compositions of varying themes: Fairy Tales, Songs & Poems, Historical Events, Village Life, Floral Designs, Heroic Battle Compositions, Castles, Cathedrals & Monasteries, Elaborate Court Scenes, of course Ivan The Great, The Epic of Prince Igor, and even Lyrical Renderings of Young People in Love.
Paintings and subjects include multi-figure compositions, delicately executed miniature portraits, fascinating Russian landscapes, delicate renderings of birds, flowers and wildlife, as well as the magnificent heritage of ancient Russian architecture with golden-domed churches & crenelated walls and towers.
The trees, foliage, scenery, and tiny figures of people at work, or animals at play are all painted in painstaking detail in the small space of the miniature, using fine brushes, or even one hair from a brush. Although the designs are often produced in “limited editions” of as many as twenty over time, the fact that each piece is individually hand painted makes each a truly unique and an original work of art.
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