Russian sculpture and decorative art of the 17th century. Russian artistic culture of the 17th - 18th centuries Russian painting of the 17th century artists
In the history of Russian art, the 17th century was a period of struggle between two painting schools and the formation of new genres. Orthodox Church still had a huge impact on human cultural life. Artists also experienced some restrictions in their activities.
icon painting
During the late Middle Ages, the center of concentration in Russia of artists and artisans was the Kremlin, or rather the Armory. The best masters of architecture, painting and other types of creativity worked there.
Despite the rapid development of art throughout Europe, painting in Russia in the 17th century had only one genre - icon painting. Artists were forced to create under the vigilant supervision of the church, which strongly opposed any innovations. Russian icon painting was formed under the influence of the painting traditions of Byzantium and by that time had clearly formed canons.
Painting, like culture in Russia in the 17th century, was rather self-contained and developed very slowly. However, one event led to a complete reformation of the icon-painting genre. In a fire in 1547 in Moscow, many ancient icons burned down. It was necessary to restore the lost. And in the process, the main stumbling block was the dispute over the nature of the faces of the saints. Opinions were divided, adherents of the old traditions believed that the images should remain symbolic. While the artists of more modern views were in favor of giving the saints and martyrs more realism.
Split into two schools
As a result, painting in Russia in the 17th century was divided into two camps. The first included representatives of the "Godunov" school (on behalf of Boris Godunov). They sought to revive the icon-painting traditions of Andrei Rublev and other medieval masters.
These masters worked on orders for the royal court and represented the official side of art. characteristic features for this school there were canonical faces of saints, simplified images of a crowd of people in the form of many heads, golden, red and blue-green tones. At the same time, one can notice the attempts of artists to convey the materiality of some objects. The Godunov school is best known for its wall paintings in the chambers of the Kremlin, in the Smolensky Cathedral, the Trinity Cathedral.
The opposing school was "Stroganov". The name is associated with the merchants Stroganovs, for whom most of the orders were made and who acted as "sponsors" in the development of painting in Russia in the 17th century. It was thanks to the masters from this school that the rapid development of art began. They were the first to make miniature icons for home prayers. This contributed to their spread among ordinary citizens.
The Stroganov masters more and more went beyond the church canons and began to pay attention to the details of the environment, the appearance of the saints. And so the landscape slowly began to develop. Their icons were colorful and decorative, and the interpretation of biblical characters was closer to the images of real people. The most famous of the surviving works are the icons "Nikita the Warrior", "John the Baptist".
Yaroslavl frescoes
A unique monument in the history of painting of the 17th century in Russia are the frescoes in the Church of the Prophet Elijah in Yaroslavl, on which artists from the Armory worked. A feature of these frescoes are scenes from real life that prevail over biblical stories. For example, in the scene with healing, the main part of the composition is occupied by the image of peasants during the harvest. It was the first monumental image in the domestic genre.
Among these frescoes one can find fabulous and mythological scenes. They amaze with their bright colors and complex architecture.
Simon Ushakov
Significant persons appear at each stage of the country's cultural development. The person who promoted painting in Russia in the 17th century in a new direction and contributed to its partial liberation from religious ideology was Simon Ushakov.
He was not only a court painter, but also a scientist, teacher, theologian, a man of broad views. Simon was fascinated by Western art. In particular, he was interested in the realistic depiction of the human face. This is clearly seen in his work "The Savior Not Made by Hands".
Ushakov was an innovator. He was the first Russian artist to use oil paint. Thanks to him, the art of engraving on copper began to develop. Being the chief artist of the Armory for thirty years, he wrote many icons, engravings, as well as several treatises. Among them is "A word to a lover of icon painting", in which he outlined his thoughts that the artist should, like a mirror, truthfully display the world. He followed this in his writings and taught it to his students. In his notes there are references to an anatomical atlas, which he wanted to write and illustrate with engravings. But, apparently, it was not published or was not preserved. The main merit of the master is that he laid the foundations for portraiture of the 17th century in Russia.
Parsuna
After significant transformations in icon painting, the portrait genre began to take shape. At first, it was performed in the icon-painting style and was called "parsuna" (from the Latin - person, personality). Artists are working more and more with living nature, and parsoons are becoming more realistic, the faces on them are gaining volume.
Portraits of Boris Godunov, tsars Alexei Mikhailovich, Fyodor Alekseevich, tsarinas Evdokia Lopukhina, Praskovya Saltykova were painted in this style.
It is known that foreign artists also worked at the court. They also greatly contributed to the evolution of Russian painting.
book graphics
Printing also came to Russian lands rather late. However, in parallel with its development, engravings, which were used as illustrations, also gained popularity. The images were both religious and domestic in nature. The book miniature of that period is distinguished by complex ornamentation, decorative letters, and portrait images are also found. Masters of the Stroganov school made a great contribution to the development of book miniatures.
Painting in Russia in the 17th century turned from a highly spiritual into a more secular and close to the people. Despite the opposition of church leaders, the artists defended their right to create in the genre of realism.
In the 17th century the formation of the all-Russian market begins. With the development of crafts and trade, the growth of cities, the penetration into Russian culture and the widespread dissemination of secular elements in it are connected. This process was called in the literature "secularization" of culture (from the word "worldly" - secular).
The main trends in culture of the 17th century.
The secularization of Russian culture was opposed by the church, which saw in it a Western, "Latin" influence. The Moscow rulers of the 17th century, seeking to limit the influence of the West in the person of foreigners arriving in Moscow, forced them to settle away from Muscovites - in the German settlement specially designated for them (now the area of Baumanskaya street). However, new ideas and customs penetrated into the established life of Muscovite Rus'. The country needed knowledgeable, educated people who could engage in diplomacy, understand the innovations of military affairs, technology, manufacturing, etc. The reunification of Ukraine with Russia contributed to the expansion of political and cultural ties with the countries of Western Europe.
In the second half of the XVII century. several public schools were established. There was a school for the training of employees for central institutions, for the Printing House, the Pharmaceutical Order, etc. The printing press made it possible to publish uniform textbooks for teaching literacy and arithmetic in mass circulation. The interest of the Russian people in literacy is evidenced by the sale in Moscow (1651) during one day of VF Burtsev's Primer, published in 2,400 copies. Meletius Smotrytsky's "Grammar" (1648) and the multiplication table (1682) were published.
In 1687, the first higher educational institution was founded in Moscow - the Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy, where they taught "from grammar, rhetoric, piitika, dialectics, philosophy ... to theology." The Academy was headed by the brothers Sofrony and Ioanniky Likhud, Greek scientists who graduated from the University of Padua (Italy). Priests and officials were trained here. MV Lomonosov also studied at this academy.
In the 17th century, as before, there was a process of accumulation of knowledge. Great successes were achieved in the field of medicine, in solving practical problems in mathematics (many were able to measure areas, distances, loose bodies, etc. with great accuracy), in observing nature.
Russian explorers made a significant contribution to the development of geographical knowledge. In 1648, the expedition of Semyon Dezhnev (80 years before Vitus Bering) reached the strait between Asia and North America. The easternmost point of our country now bears the name of Dezhnev. E. P. Khabarov in 1649 compiled a map and studied the lands along the Amur, where Russian settlements were founded. The city of Khabarovsk and the village of Erofey Pavlovich bear his name. At the very end of the XVII century. Siberian Cossack VV Atlasov explored Kamchatka and the Kuril Islands.
Literature
In the 17th century the last official annalistic compositions were created. The New Chronicler (30s) recounted the events from the death of Ivan the Terrible to the end of the Time of Troubles. It proved the rights of the new Romanov dynasty to the royal throne.
The central place in historical literature was occupied by historical novels, which had a journalistic character. For example, a group of such stories (“The Time of the Deacon Ivan Timofeev”, “The Tale of Avraamy Palitsyn”, “Another Tale”, etc.) was a response to the events of the Time of Troubles at the beginning of the 17th century.
The penetration of secular principles into literature is associated with the appearance in the 17th century. a genre of satirical story, where already fictional characters act. The “Service to the Tavern”, “The Tale of the Chicken and the Fox”, “Kalyazinsky Petition” contained a parody of church service, gluttony and drunkenness of monks were ridiculed, in the "Tale of Ersh Ershovich" - judicial red tape and bribery. The new genres were memoirs (“The Life of Archpriest Avvakum”) and love lyrics (Simeon of Polotsk).
The reunification of Ukraine with Russia gave impetus to the creation of the first Russian printed work on history. The Kiev monk Innocent Gizel compiled a "Synopsis" (review), which in a popular form contained a story about the joint history of Ukraine and Russia, which began with the formation of Kievan Rus. In the XVII - the first half of the XVIII century. "Synopsis" was used as a textbook of Russian history.
Theater
A court theater was created in Moscow (1672), which lasted only four years. It featured German actors. Male and female roles were played by men. The repertoire of the theater included plays based on biblical and legendary-historical subjects. The court theater did not leave any noticeable trace in Russian culture.
In Russian cities and villages, since the time of Kievan Rus, a wandering theater has become widespread - the theater of buffoons and Petrushka ( main character folk puppet shows). The government and church authorities persecuted buffoonery for their cheerful and bold humor, exposing the vices of those in power.
Architecture
Architectural buildings of the 17th century. are of great beauty. They are asymmetrical both within a single building and in an ensemble. However, in this apparent disorder of architectural volumes there is both integrity and unity. Buildings of the 17th century multicolored, decorative. Architects were especially fond of decorating the windows of buildings with intricate, unlike each other platbands. Widespread in the 17th century. received multi-colored "solar tiles" - tiles and decorations made of carved stone and brick. Such an abundance of decorations located on the walls of one building was called a stone pattern, marvelous pattern.
These features are well traced in the Terem Palace of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich in the Kremlin, in the stone chambers of the Moscow, Pskov, Kostroma boyars of the 17th century that have come down to us, in the New Jerusalem Monastery, built near Moscow by Patriarch Nikon. The famous temples of Yaroslavl are close to them in style - the church of Elijah the Prophet and ensembles in Korovniki and Tolchkovo. As an example of the most famous buildings in Moscow of the 17th century. you can name the Church of St. Nicholas in Khamovniki (near the Park Kultury metro station), the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin in Putinki (not far from Pushkinskaya Square), the Trinity Church in Nikitniki (near the Kitai-Gorod metro station).
The decorative beginning, which marked the secularization of art, was also reflected in the construction or reconstruction of fortifications. By the middle of the century, the fortresses had lost their military significance, and the hipped roofs, first on Spasskaya and then on other towers of the Moscow Kremlin, gave way to magnificent tents that emphasized the calm grandeur and solemn power of the heart of the Russian capital.
In Rostov the Great, in the form of a Kremlin, the residence of the disgraced but powerful Metropolitan Jonah was built. This Kremlin was not a fortress, and its walls were purely decorative. The walls of large Russian monasteries erected after the Polish-Lithuanian-Swedish intervention (Trinity-Sergius Monastery, Spaso-Efimiev Monastery in Suzdal, Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery near Vologda, Moscow monasteries), following the general fashion, were also decorated with decorative details.
The development of ancient Russian stone architecture ended with the folding of the style, which was called Naryshkin (after the names of the main customers) or Moscow Baroque. Gate churches, the refectory and the bell tower of the Novodevichy Convent, the Church of the Intercession in Fili, churches and palaces in Sergiev Posad, Nizhny Novgorod, Zvenigorod and others were built in this style.
The Moscow baroque is characterized by a combination of red and white flowers in the decoration of buildings. The number of storeys of buildings, the use of columns, capitals, etc. as decorative ornaments are clearly traced. by Italian masters when decorating the Archangel Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin. The appearance of the Moscow baroque, which had common features with the architecture of the West, testified that Russian architecture, despite its originality, developed within the framework of a common European culture.
In the 17th century, wooden architecture flourished. "The eighth wonder of the world" was called by contemporaries the famous palace of Alexei Mikhailovich in the village of Kolomenskoye near Moscow. This palace had 270 rooms and about 3 thousand windows and windows. It was built by Russian craftsmen Semyon Petrov and Ivan Mikhailov and existed until the middle of the 18th century, when it was dismantled under Catherine II due to dilapidation.
Painting
The secularization of art manifested itself with particular force in Russian painting. The greatest artist of the 17th century was Simon Ushakov. In his well-known icon "The Savior Not Made by Hands", new realistic features of painting are clearly visible: three-dimensionality in the depiction of the face, elements of direct perspective.
The trend towards a realistic depiction of a person and the secularization of icon painting, characteristic of the school of S. Ushakov, is closely connected with the spread in Russia of portraiture - a parsuna (person), depicting real characters, for example, Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich, M. V. Skopin-Shuisky and others. However, the technique of the artists was still similar to icon painting, that is, they wrote on boards with egg paints. At the end of the XVII century. the first parsunas appeared, painted in oil on canvas, anticipating the heyday of Russian portrait art in the 18th century.
Conclusions on the culture of the 17th century.
The 17th century is one of the most difficult and controversial periods in medieval Russian history. No wonder it was called "rebellious" - it exploded with "Copper" and "Salt" riots. Popular discontent resulted in uprisings led by Ivan Bolotnikov and Stepan Razin. It is also a time of great change in the Russian church. The reforms of Patriarch Nikon led first to a theological controversy, and then to a schism in the church, which shook the spiritual life of late ancient Russian society.
At the same time, in connection with changes in the economic sphere, with the publication of manufactories, a certain rapprochement with Western Europe, a decisive breakdown of the traditional social worldview is taking place. Craving for science, interest in literature for real subjects, the growth of secular journalism, the violation of iconographic canons in painting, the convergence of cult and civil architecture, love for decoration, for polychromy in architecture, and in all fine arts - all this indicates a rapid process secularization of culture of the 17th century. In the struggle between the old and the new, in contradictions, the art of the new time is born. The 17th century ends the history of ancient Russian art, and it also opens the way for a new secular culture.
Active construction begins immediately after the expulsion of the interventionists, from the 1920s. Three stages can be traced in the architecture of this century: in the first quarter of the 17th century. or even in the first 30 years it still has a strong connection with the traditions of the sixteenth century; middle of the century - 40-80s - the search for a new style that corresponded to the spirit of the times, and its heyday; the end of the century - a departure from the old techniques and the approval of new ones, indicating the birth of the architecture of the so-called new time.
Church buildings of the beginning of the century differ little from the temples of the XVI century. Thus, the Church of the Intercession in the royal village of Rubtsovo (1619-1625), erected in honor of the liberation of Moscow from the Poles, the end of the "troubles", is a pillarless church covered with a closed vault, in its internal and external appearance close to the churches of Godunov's time. The building stands on the basement, surrounded by a two-tier gallery, has two aisles, three tiers of kokoshniks go from the main volume to the small dome. The tent construction continues. A church is being built in Medvedkovo (the estate of Prince D. Pozharsky, 1623, now Moscow), the "Wonderful" church in Uglich. The tent also rose above the Kremlin's Spassky Tower when, in 1628, its walls and towers, which had been damaged during the intervention, began to be restored (other towers were completed only 60 years later). In the 1930s, the largest secular building on the territory of the Moscow Kremlin, the Terem Palace, was built (1635–1636, architects Bazhen Ogurtsov, Antip Konstantinov, Trefil Sharutin and Larion Ushakov; later it was remodeled several times). The palace was built on the basement of the 16th century, it has an upper ambush, an “attic”-teremok and a gilded hipped roof. The Terem Palace, created for the royal children, with all its “multi-volume” residential and service premises, the multi-colored decor (the “grass” ornament of the exterior carved on white stone and the richest painting by Simon Ushakov inside) resembled wooden mansions.
In the 40s, a typical for the 17th century took shape. style - with a picturesque, asymmetric grouping of masses. Architectural forms become more complex, the structure of the building is difficult to read through the decor covering the entire wall, most often polychrome. The tent-roof architecture, the verticalism of its integral volume, gradually loses its meaning, because churches appear in which there are two, three, sometimes five tents of the same height, as in the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin in Putinki in Moscow (1649–1652): three tents of the main volume, one above the aisle and one above the bell tower. In addition, the tents are now deaf, purely decorative. From now on, in the patriarchal letters for the construction of the church, the phrase appears more and more often: "And so that the top on that church was not tented." However, as already mentioned, tents remained one of the favorite forms and in cities they were preserved mainly on bell towers, porches, gates, and in rural areas tent churches were built in the 17th and even 18th centuries. We also note that in the Resurrection Cathedral of the New Jerusalem Monastery in Istra near Moscow, built in the 50s–60s by Patriarch Nikon, which seems to repeat the temple in Jerusalem, the western volume of the building (rotunda) ends with a tent. A certain type of temple spreads - pillarless, usually five-domed, with decorative side drums (only the central one is illuminated), with an accentuated asymmetry of the overall composition due to the different-scale side chapels, a refectory, porches, and a hipped bell tower. An example is the Church of the Trinity in Nikitniki (1631-1634, another date 1628-1653), built by the richest Moscow merchant Nikitnikov and reminiscent of mansion construction with its whimsical forms and decorative multicolor (red brick, white stone carving, green tiled cupolas, glazed tiles). The richness of the architectural decor is especially characteristic of Yaroslavl. Founded back in the 11th century. Yaroslav the Wise, this city experienced something like a "golden age" in art in the 17th century. The fire of 1658, which destroyed about three dozen churches, three monasteries and more than a thousand houses, caused intensive construction in the second half of the century. Large five-domed churches are being built here, surrounded by porches, aisles, aisles and porches, with an obligatory hipped bell tower, sometimes tents and aisles (for example, the Church of Elijah the Prophet, built at the expense of the merchants Skripin, 1647–1650), always in perfect harmony with the landscape (the church St. John Chrysostom in Korovniki, 1649–1654, some additions were made in the 80s, its hipped bell tower is 38 m high, with multi-colored decorative decoration from glazed tiles; Church of John the Baptist in Tolchkovo, 1671–1687, the five-domed main volume of which is supplemented with 10 chapters two aisles, all this together forms a 15-domed spectacular silhouette). Church hierarchs do not remain indifferent to the decorative richness of the then architecture. Metropolitan Iona Sysoevich is building his residence in Rostov the Great on the shores of Lake Nero (metropolitan's chambers and the House Church), usually called the Rostov Kremlin (70-80s of the 17th century), on a large scale. The splendor of the towers, galleries, porches, gates is not inferior to the splendor of the actual church buildings, and religious and civil architecture, as it were, compete in the festivity of the image. And how else, if not the victory of the secular beginning, can one call the architecture of the Gate Tower of the Krutitsy Metropolitan Compound in Moscow (1681–1693, another date is 1694), the entire facade of which is decorated with multi-colored tiles?! It was built by O. Startsev and L. Kovalev.
In recent decades, or rather even in the 90s of the 17th century, a new style appeared in Russian architecture, a new direction, which is conditionally called "Moscow" or "Naryshkin Baroque", apparently because most of the temples of this style were built in Moscow by order of the noble boyars Naryshkin, mostly the brother of the queen, Lev Kirillovich. Centricity and tieredness, symmetry and balance of masses, known separately and earlier, developed in this style into a certain system - quite original, but, given the applied order details, close (in external design) to the European Baroque style. In any case, this is the name that was assigned to the architecture of this direction (although it is not Moscow, because it spread outside Moscow, and not Naryshkin - this is even more narrowed). Some researchers, such as B. R. Vipper, consider it unlawful to use the term “baroque” in general, because this is “not a turning point in the worldview, but a change in tastes, not the emergence of new principles, but the enrichment of techniques.” The architecture of the “Naryshkin baroque” is only “an intermediary between old and new artistic ideas”, a kind of “herald of the romantic beginning in the new Russian art. But at the same time, it is quite obvious that she lacked courage, radicalism, genuine innovation "to be called a style (see about this: Vipper B.R. Russian Baroque Architecture. M., 1978. S. 17–18, 38–39). Typical examples of the "Naryshkin baroque" are churches in the estates of the nobility near Moscow. These are tiered buildings (octages or octagonal quadrangles, known for a long time) on the basement, with galleries. The last octagon in front of the head drum is used as a bell tower, hence the name of this kind of churches “churches under the bells”. Here, in a modified form, Russian wooden architecture made itself felt in full measure with its pronounced centricity and pyramidality, with a calm balance of masses and an organic fit into the surrounding landscape. The most striking example of the “Moscow baroque” is the Church of the Intercession in Fili (1693–1695), the estate church of L.K. Naryshkin (“a light lace fairy tale”, according to I.E. Grabar), the verticalism of the elegant, openwork silhouette of which finds analogies in hipped and pillar-shaped temples. White-stone profiled columns on the edges of the edges, framing of windows and doors emphasize this aspiration of the entire architectural volume upwards. No less beautiful are the churches in Trinity-Lykovo (1698–1704) and in Ubory (1693–1697), both creations of the architect Yakov Bukhvostov. The regularity of construction, the use of a floor-by-floor order, the concentration of decorative elements in the frame of openings and in the cornices make these structures related. In the Church of the Sign in the patrimony of B. Golitsyn Dubrovitsy (1690–1704), according to the plan, it seems to be close to the Church of the Intercession in Fili, a departure from the principles of Old Russian architecture and rapprochement with baroque European buildings is planned.
The architecture of the 17th century is characterized by its geographical scale: active construction is being carried out in Moscow and its environs, in Yaroslavl, Tver, Pskov, Ryazan, Kostroma, Vologda, Kargopol, etc.
The process of secularization of Russian culture is especially clearly manifested at this time in civil architecture. Features of regularity and symmetry can be traced in the chambers of V.V. Golitsyn in Moscow in Okhotny Ryad, in the house of the boyar Troyekurov with its magnificent outdoor decoration. Many public buildings were being built: the Printing (1679) and Mint (1696) yards, the building of Orders (pharmacy on Red Square, 90s). The Sretensky Gate of the Earthen City, used as a building for the garrison, and under Peter became a "navigational" and mathematical school and better known as the Sukharev Tower (1692–1701, architect Mikhail Choglokov). Thus, in the pronounced national architecture of the 17th century, with its picturesque asymmetry, polychromy of rich decor, cheerfulness and inexhaustibility of folk fantasy, features of regularity are strengthened, some techniques of Western European architecture, the use of order details - elements that will be developed in subsequent centuries.
Perhaps, in no other form of art, as in painting, all the contradictions of the turbulent 17th century were reflected with such clarity. It was in painting that the process of secularization of art was especially active.
Turn of the XVI-XVII centuries. commemorated in fine arts the presence of two different artistic directions. The first is the so-called Godunov school, so named because most of the works were commissioned by Boris Godunov. The artists of this trend strove to follow the monumental images of Rublev and Dionysius, but, in fact, it was archaic and eclectic. The second is the “Stroganov school”, conditionally named so because some icons were commissioned by eminent people of the Stroganovs. Not only Stroganov's Solvychegoda icon painters belonged to it, but also Moscow, tsarist and patriarchal masters. The best of them are Procopius Chirin, Nikita, Nazariy, Fyodor and Istoma Savina, etc. The Stroganov icon is small in size, it is not so much a prayer image as a precious miniature, designed for an art connoisseur (it is not for nothing that it is already signed, not anonymous). It is characterized by careful, very small writing, the sophistication of the drawing, the richness of ornamentation, the abundance of gold and silver. A typical work of the "Stroganov school" is the icon of Prokopy Chirin "Nikita the Warrior" (1593, State Tretyakov Gallery). His figure is fragile, devoid of the masculinity of the holy warriors of the pre-Mongol era or the time of early Moscow art (remember Boris and Gleb from the State Tretyakov Gallery), his posture is mannered, his legs and arms are deliberately weak, the outfit is emphatically refined. It is necessary to recognize the fact that the masters of the “Stroganov school” were undoubtedly new in the fact that they managed to convey the deeply lyrical mood of a poetic, fabulous landscape with golden foliage of trees and silvery, finely traced rivers (“John the Baptist in the Desert” from the State Tretyakov Gallery). Created rather for collectors, connoisseurs, amateurs, the icon of the "Stroganov school" remained in Russian icon painting as an example of high professionalism, artistry, sophistication of the language, but at the same time it testified to the gradual dying of the monumental prayer image.
Schism in the 17th century church more and more acquired a social character, and influenced cultural life. Disputes between the schismatics and the official religion resulted in a struggle between two different aesthetic views. Simon Ushakov (1626–1686), the tsarist painter and art theorist, was at the head of the new movement, proclaiming the tasks of painting that led, in fact, to a break with the ancient Russian icon-painting tradition. He outlined his views in a treatise dedicated to his friend Joseph Vladimirov, "Word to the inquisitive icon painting" (1667). Ushakov introduced his own understanding of the purpose of the icon into the traditional idea of icon painting, highlighting, first of all, its artistic, aesthetic side. Ushakov was most interested in the relationship of painting with real life, we would say, "the relationship of art to reality." For the defenders of the old tradition, led by Archpriest Avvakum, religious art had no connection with reality. The icon, they believed, is an object of worship, everything in it, even the board itself, is sacred, and the faces of saints cannot be a copy of the faces of mere mortals.
An excellent teacher, a skilled organizer, one of the main painters of the Armory, Simon Ushakov was true to his theoretical conclusions in his own practice. His favorite themes - "The Savior Not Made by Hands" (State Russian Museum, State Tretyakov Gallery, State Historical Museum), "Trinity" (State Russian Museum) - show how the artist sought to get rid of the conventional canons of icon painting that had developed in centuries-old traditions. He achieves a bodily tone of faces, almost classical regularity of features, volumetric construction, emphasized perspective (sometimes directly using the architectural backgrounds of Italian Renaissance painting). Despite the compositional similarity with Rublev's Trinity, Ushakov's Trinity (1671, Russian Museum) has nothing in common with it in the main thing - it lacks the spirituality of Rublev's images. Angels look like quite earthly creatures, which in itself is meaningless, a table with a bowl - a symbol of the sacrament of sacrifice, redemption - has turned into a real still life.
In the middle of the XVII century. the Armory became the artistic center of the whole country, headed by one of the most educated people of his time, the boyar B.M. Khitrovo. The masters of the Armory decorated churches and chambers, updated old paintings, painted icons and miniatures, “signners” (i.e. draftsmen) created drawings for icons, banners, church embroidery, and jewelry. All the outstanding artistic forces of Rus' gathered here, foreign masters also worked here, orders came from here for the execution of numerous murals, easel and monumental works in a variety of techniques.
Fresco painting of the 17th century. with a big reservation can be called monumental. They painted a lot, but differently than before. The images are shredded and hard to read from a distance. There is no tectonics in the fresco cycles of the 17th century. The frescoes cover the walls, pillars, architraves with one continuous pattern, in which genre scenes are intertwined with intricate ornaments. The ornament covers the architecture, figures of people, their costumes, landscape backgrounds grow out of ornamental rhythms. Decorativism is one of distinctive features fresco painting of the 17th century. The second feature is festivity and constant interest in a person in his Everyday life, the emphasis in the plots of Holy Scripture on the beauty of nature, human labor, that is, life in all its diversity. We do not call this quality of painting in the 17th century. bytovism, as it often sounds in works on art of the 17th century. Not a dull record of the little things of everyday life, but the true element of the holiday, the constant victory over the ordinary - that's what murals of the 17th century are like. The Yaroslavl frescoes of Gury Nikitin's artel and Sila Savin or Dmitry Grigoriev (Plekhanov) are the most striking example of this. In the 17th century Yaroslavl, a rich city on the Volga, is becoming, as already mentioned, one of the most interesting centers of not only a stormy social, but also artistic life. Merchants and wealthy townspeople build and paint churches. The master from the Armory, the already mentioned Gury Nikitin, in 1679 nominated by Simon Ushakov for the title of "complained" master, painted the Yaroslavl Church of Elijah the Prophet in 1681 with a large artel, Dmitry Grigoriev-Plekhanov with his artel - the Church of John the Baptist in Tolchkovo . The themes of the Holy Scriptures turn into fascinating short stories, their religious content remains, but acquires a different, sharp shade, is painted in the optimistic colors of the people's worldview. The engravings of the famous Piscator (Fischer) Bible, published in Holland and serving as a model for Russian masters, form the basis of many frescoes of Yaroslavl churches, but they are rendered in a strong revision, both semantic and stylistic. A well-known example of the image of the harvest in the scene of the healing of the youth by the saint: with undisguised delight, the mural painter depicts how reapers in bright shirts reap and knit rye into sheaves on a golden grain field. The master does not forget to depict even cornflowers among the rye. As one of the researchers (V.A. Plugin) correctly noted, a person in the murals of the 17th century. rarely appears as a contemplative, philosopher, people in the painting of this time are very active, they build, fight, trade, plow, ride in a carriage and on horseback; all scenes are quite "crowded" and "noisy". This is typical both for Moscow churches (the Church of the Trinity in Nikitniki, painted back in the 50s), and for Rostov and especially for Yaroslavl, which left wonderful monuments of murals of the 17th century.
Secular paintings are better known to us only from the testimony of contemporaries, for example, the painting of the Kolomna Palace, fabulous, like its appearance, this is the painting of the Faceted Chamber, which has come down to us, performed by Simon Ushakov together with the deacon Klementyev.
Finally, the portrait genre becomes a harbinger of the art of the future era. The portrait - parsuna (from the distorted word "persona", Latin "persona", personality) - was born at the turn of the 16th-17th centuries. Images of Ivan IV from the Copenhagen National Museum, Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich (GIM), Prince M.V. Skopin-Shuisky (TG) are still close to the icon in terms of the method of implementation, but they already have a certain portrait resemblance. There are also changes in the language of the image. With all the naivety of form, linearity, static, locality, there is already, albeit timid, an attempt at black and white modeling.
In the middle of the XVII century. some parsunas were performed by foreign artists. It is believed that the portrait of Patriarch Nikon with the clergy belongs to the Dutchman Wuchters. Parsuns of the steward V. Lyutkin, L. Naryshkin of the end of the 17th century. can already be called portraits.
In the ancient Russian graphics of this time, there are many everyday scenes and portraits. For example, the famous Gospel of Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich of 1678 contains 1200 miniatures. These are figures of fishermen, peasants, rural landscapes. In the handwritten “Titular Book” (“Big State Book”, or “The Root of Russian Sovereigns”) we find images of Russian and foreign rulers (1672–1673; TsGADA, RE, RNB). The development of book printing contributed to the flourishing of engraving, first on wood and then on metal. Simon Ushakov himself participated in the engraving of The Tale of Barlaam and Joasaph, together with the engraver of the Armory A. Trukhmensky.
The desire to convey real earthly beauty and, at the same time, fabulous fantasy are characteristic of all types of artistic creativity of the 17th century. In the Terem Palace, walls, vaults, floors, tiled stoves, dishes, fabrics, costumes of people - everything was covered with a dense grass ornament. Facades, window trims, and porches of the wooden Kolomna Palace were decorated with carved ornaments. Iconostases and royal gates in churches were decorated with the same abundant carving (more and more high relief) with gilding. Love for ornamental patterns was also reflected in stone carving. The gilding of the carving, the polychromy of the tiles, and the red color of the bricks created a festive and decorative architectural image. Perfection reaches the art of glazed tiles, architectural and decorative ceramics. Tiles of various shapes, colors and designs either completely covered the walls with a patterned carpet, as in the already mentioned Krutitsy Teremka, or played the role of inserts or decorated windows around the perimeter, as in the Yaroslavl churches of St. John Chrysostom or St. Nicholas the Wet. The manufacture of the tile was reminiscent of the folk wooden carving of gingerbread boards, which has long been familiar to Russian people, and its color scheme is embroidery, prints, and popular prints.
Increasingly asserts itself in the XVII century and round sculpture, almost completely unfamiliar to previous eras. The desire for emphasized plasticity, three-dimensionality also affected metal products: chased gold and silver chasubles of icons, various forms of utensils, both church and secular. The love for multi-colored patterns caused a new flourishing of the art of enamels, in which Solvychegodsk and Ustyug craftsmen became especially famous. In the Solvychegodsk workshops of the “eminent people of the Stroganovs”, the “Usolsk enamel business” is developing: Usolsk enamel is distinguished by the painting of floral ornaments on a light background. In the Volga cities, the art of printing was developed: a colorful pattern is printed on canvas from carved wooden boards.
In the pattern that adorns the sewing, the departure from painting to jewelry art is obvious: the main emphasis is on the brilliance of gold and silver, sparkling precious stones and pearls. Gold embroidery reaches a special subtlety and perfection in the Stroganov school of sewing in the middle of the century. The gold seamstresses of the "Tsarina's Workshop Chamber" were famous for decorative sewing. But even in the applied arts, where the canons were kept the longest, an interest in life is manifested; here, as in painting, there is clearly a tendency towards increased decorativeness, lush ornamentation. Everything testifies to the victory of new artistic tastes, a new worldview, to the impending turning point at the turn of the two centuries.
The great ancient Russian art was formed in the closest connection with religion. The Christian Orthodox worldview gave rise to special forms of churches and monastic buildings, developed a certain system and technique of monumental painting and icon painting. Medieval thinking gave rise to certain canons in art, which is why in Ancient Rus' huge role played examples both in architecture and in painting.
Old Russian art, of course, developed and changed over more than 800 years of existence, but its forms and traditions did not die and disappear without a trace with the advent of the new time, they still had a long life, albeit in a modified form, in the art of subsequent centuries.
Painting of the 17th century in Russia revealed its potential. Two schools of icon painting, Stroganov and Godunov, were developed. A new portrait genre, the parsuna, was also developed.
Noble nobles and simply rich people sought to capture themselves on the canvas of history with the help of paints, and the artists, in turn, tried to convey not only facial features or facial expressions, but also the character, soul of the person they depicted.
Features of Russian painting of the 17th century
Russian painting of the 17th century underwent great changes. The artists strove for the new, the unknown, but at the same time they tried not to forget and not deviate from the Old Believer dogmas.
It is for this reason that at the beginning of the 17th century in Russia there was a kind of split in icon painting into two dominant schools: Stroganov and Godunov. These two schools or directions worked in two main styles, not similar to each other.
The Godunov school stood on those canons of painting that evolved over time. She did not develop new colors or images, but gravitated towards the traditions of the past. The Stroganov school developed new canons; it used bright colors, sophistication of drawing, and a complex multifaceted composition in icon painting. In other words, if the Godunov school went backwards, then the Stroganov school ran forward with leaps and bounds, developing its creative potential.
Parsuna
Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich and the Armory, zealously criticized and forbade any departure from the already established canons of painting. Simon Ushakov for a long time headed the painting business in Russia. And despite the prohibitions, in the first place, he always paid attention to the image of a human face. This was his passion. Perhaps it was from this that a new pictorial genre began to develop in Russia.
In the second half of the 17th century, a new genre appeared in Russia - parsuna. It was the first portrait genre in Russia. Initially, it was used only in icon painting, but after a few years, artists began to make portraits of real people who lined up in crowds at their doors. Having your portrait became very popular, it was prestigious.
Parsuna was performed in the tradition of icon painting. The origin and high title of the one who was depicted were emphasized on the parsoon. The artist's attention was focused not so much on the face as on accessories: coats of arms, inscriptions, rich details.
Yaroslavl school
Another new phenomenon in the painting of the 17th century in Russia was the Yaroslavl School of Masters. Its peculiarity was that they began to depict traditional church-biblical frescoes in the form of ordinary life. One of these creations was the composition "Harvest". Sometimes this school is called the "pioneer" of the Russian landscape. She was one of the factors that led to the development of the landscape as a genre of painting.
Results
Russian painting of the 17th century laid the first building blocks for the development of portrait and landscape painting in Russia. It was in the 17th century that artistic masters appeared who decided for the first time to move away from the accustomed canons and try something new, not yet accustomed, but surprising. Since that time, painting began to develop, and not stand still. Artists began to test their skills by depicting people as they were with their vices and qualities. This is a time of great change and knowledge, which has contributed to the pages of artistic history.
The growing interest in the art of the 17th century in the real, living world was expressed with great strength and in subject matter. But along with new trends and influences of Western and Eastern art, decorative art also reflected the ideas of the defenders of antiquity, who defended the original traditions before the supporters of the Western direction in the development of Russian culture. The leading representatives of the new direction, such as A. L. Nashchokin, however, warned against blind imitation of Western models, foreign fashion and everyday life. Since the main customers at that time were nobles and merchants, then, naturally, their needs and tastes influenced artistic creativity in the first place. Decorative and applied arts were increasingly included in everyday life and served its needs.
The new aspirations of the era, the craving for materiality coexist in art with elegance and luxury. The bright brilliance and richness of Russian patterning now reach a special splendor, becoming characteristic of a wide range of products of Russian artisans. Being natives of the people, they largely expressed the tastes of the people.
As already mentioned in the previous chapter, the main handicraft forces were concentrated by the Armory of the Moscow Kremlin.
Feeling earthly beauty, interest in real forms - on the one hand, on the other - fabulous fantasy permeated all types of artistic creativity. Ornamentation, which translated the motives of wildlife, was the leading principle. Characteristic in this regard is the Kremlin's Terem Palace. Here, the whole architecture is imbued with patterns, inside and out. Walls, vaults, floors, tiled stoves, fabrics, utensils - everything seems to be braided with a thick winding herbal ornament. The Kolomna Palace was called the eighth wonder of the world by contemporaries. The carving covered the gaps, architraves and lintels, porches with ornaments, giving the image a festive look.
Lush openwork carving, where the main element was a plant shoot, a flower, a bunch of grapes, adorned the iconostases, the royal gates - they shone in temples with gilding. The dense patterning of the "stone cut" introduced a whimsical rhythm into the image architectural structures. Here the experience of rich traditions, and the love for the ornament of Russian masters, and that special warehouse of their artistic thinking, in which folklore fiction, fiction had great importance. The exceptional skill of Russian carvers in wood and stone was brilliantly imprinted in many art ensembles of the 17th century. These include, first of all, the stone and wooden carvings of the Novodevichy Convent, the Church of St. Nicholas "Big Cresg", the Krutitsky Tower in Moscow. Images of fantastic and quite real animals, such as lynx, squirrel, etc., are woven into a dense floral pattern with motifs of vines, leaves, flowers.
A special monumentality permeates the artistic structure of fine, almost jewelry, three-dimensional carving of iconostases, for example, the iconostasis of the Smolensk Cathedral of the Novodevichy Convent in Moscow, made in 1683-1685 by the masters of the Kremlin Armory, headed by Osip Andreev and Stepan Zinoviev, as well as the royal gates in churches Moscow (for example, in the Church of the Assumption on Pokrovka, 1696, ill. 115) and many other cities.
The new principles of painting, the increasing three-dimensionality of the figures and the diversity of the composition in icon painting demanded other frames. The iconostasis carving becomes high-relief and is so saturated with rich forms that sometimes the rhythmic clarity of the carved ornament is lost. But still, even now the sense of synthesis does not leave the master, the riot of bizarre patterns is restrained by the strict architectural logic of the whole (the iconostasis of the Church of the Sign in Dubrovitsy, 1690-1704).
The carving, combined with the colorfulness of the painting, tiles and colored bricks, creates a festive and decorative image of the architecture of the 17th century (platbands of the New Jerusalem Cathedral).
Glazed tiles - green, of various shades, which appeared at the beginning of the century, are gradually enriched in color, the plasticity of their forms is enhanced.
In the middle of the 17th century, the art of architectural ceramics, called the valuable business, was rapidly developing. Tiles adorn the facades of churches not only in Moscow, but also in other cities. They have become characteristic of urban architecture in Yaroslavl, Rostov, Solvychegodsk, giving it a special elegance, cheerfulness. The tiled decoration of the Yaroslavl churches of John Chrysostom in Korovniki (1649-1654), Nikola Wet (second half of the 17th century) and others testifies to the artistic achievements of Russian masters.
Tiles different in shape, pattern and color were sometimes used as decorative inserts or as precious window frames, widths encircling the building, otherwise, according to the principle of a patterned carpet, they covered the walls entirely, as in the decoration of the tower of the Krutitsy Metropolitan Compound.
The tile production, which flourished at the Valdai Iberian Monastery, transferred by Patriarch Nikon to New Jerusalem at the very beginning of its construction, has grown extraordinarily. Among the masters, Ignat Maksimov, Stepan Ivanov Polubes and others were famous for their art. (tiles of the Church of Gregory of Neocaesarea in Moscow, 1679).
116. Gavrila Ovdokimov "with comrades." Head of Tsarevich Dmitry. Detail of a silver shrine from the Archangel Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin. 1630
117. Silver bowl with Usol enamel. 17th century
118. Mantle of the sakkos of Metropolitan Dionysius. 1583
119. Silver brother. First third of the 17th century
The floral motif is combined in tiles with cartouches and other decorative forms, which are basically similar to folk wooden carvings. The very principle of making a tile, reminiscent of gingerbread art in technique, is related to it. In plastic clay, as in dough, the pattern was imprinted with a wooden or stone carved form.
Polychrome tiles were widely distributed in the second half of the 17th century. Green, turquoise, blue, yellow, white colors opaque glazes sparkled with joyful multicolor, introducing a special picturesqueness and festivity not only into the external decoration of architecture, but also into its interior space, where elegant patterning with images of fabulous birds and plants on the stove tiles created a decorative center of the interiors of the boyar chambers and town houses.
Along with carving on wood and stone, round sculpture acquired a prominent role at this time. It especially clearly reflected the struggle between the traditional and the new realistic tendencies. The choice of topics was still limited by the conventions of ancient traditions. However, the growing realistic aspirations in art are gradually increasing volume and statuary in sculpture. For example, in the sculpture of Paraskeva Pyatnitsa from the Bryansk Peter and Paul Monastery (XVII century) and in the figure of an old man (XVII century, Russian Museum), realistic elements in the interpretation of the face are combined with the traditional “blocky” brightly colored image of the figure.
Sculpture occupies a special place Perm Territory(Perm State Art Gallery). Pagan traditions were alive here, which determined the flourishing of local wooden sculpture. Freshness, immediacy of folk art distinguishes cult plastic. The generalization of the form, a clear linear rhythm, the expressiveness of the silhouette, great expression are inherent in human warm images saints: the suffering Christ, Nikola Mozhaisky and others (end of the 17th century). Often there were sculptural images of birds, a lion. Volumetric carved lions, vitally expressive, were placed at the foot of the "places" of the temple builders, were a detail of carved furniture of the 17th century (Museum-Reserve of the 16th-17th centuries "Kolomenskoye").
The desire for plasticity, fullness of volumetric form was also expressed in metal products. The icons are decorated with juicy chased reliefs of gold and silver robes, which now almost completely hide the painting. Sometimes chased images of figures approach to some extent round sculpture. Large heads of cherubs are soldered on silver ripids. Of exceptional interest is a chased silver shrine from the Archangel Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin with a sculptural image of Tsarevich Dmitry (1630, State Armory Chamber, ill. 116). Fine modeling of the shape of the face, which has portrait features, is combined with a rich pattern of chased floral ornaments and precious stones that adorn the crown crown. The authors of this work are Gavrila Ovdokimov and five other silversmiths from the Armory.
Copper casting was no less developed in the 17th century. The forms of Russian gold and silver dishes remain calm, rounded in outline. She does not lose closeness with folk wooden utensils. Moscow chasers of that time showed creative ingenuity, approved new techniques of decoration and ornamentation, guided by an unmistakable sense of harmony, knowledge of the material and understanding of things as a synthesis of sculptural form and decor. An excellent expression of this is the brother of the 17th century - the national Russian form of the congratulations bowl (the first third of the 17th century, State Historical Museum, ill. 119). In Fyodor Evstigneev's silver bratina of 1642 (State Armoury), the herbal chased ornament envelops the form, as it were, emphasizing its roundness with the measured rhythm of creeping curls.
The ornamental ligature of the inscription runs along the smooth background of the crown of the neck, which gathers the shape upwards; it says that true love is like an unbreakable golden vessel. The cone-shaped caps of the brothers are similar to the helmets of ancient Russian knights or the onion cupolas of Russian churches. The shape of the brothers has hardly changed over the centuries, while the silver ladle, called the ladle-swan, undergoes great changes in the 17th century. The proportions are changing, the silhouette is boat-shaped. The resemblance to a swimming bird is erased as the ladle loses its practical purpose by the end of the century. During this period, new forms of dishes appear; glasses, cups, mugs, goblets covered with a black floral ornament. He densely covered the surface of the thing and yet never destroyed the architectonics of its form. The craftsman was able to use smooth areas of the surface, the brilliance or dullness of the metal, contrasting with the dense patterns, to reveal, emphasize the plasticity of the material itself, the design of the thing, the sculptural form. The ornament has undergone changes throughout the century. Strict simplicity, unrestricted, natural flow
the rhythm of curly lines. By the end of the century, it comes to the place of dense filling of space with a complex weaving of rounded stems and leaves. By the second half of the century, the floral ornament loses its abstract character. Its forms approach the natural, observed in nature. Juicy images of flowers, leaves and herbs become larger, the rhythms are freer. Their elasticity gives the impression of growth strength. Such, for example, is the niello ornament of a silver foot of the late 17th century (GIM) and a silver stave of Princess Sophia, made by masters Mikhail Mikhailov and Andrei Pavlov (1685, State Armory). The gilded flowers and leaves of the stavets shimmer softly against a black velvet backdrop.
The colorful patterning of the Russian arts and crafts of the 17th century cannot be imagined without the multicolored enamels and decorative sewing. Enamel art at that time was raised to a great height by the masters of Moscow, Solvychegodsk and Veliky Ustyug. The Solvychegodsk craftsmen became especially famous for their enamel painting (the last quarter of the 17th century), multicolored, bright compared to the light, light tones of Moscow enamels. In the royal workshops, the frames of icons and gospels were decorated with enamels. Outstanding monuments of Moscow jewelry are items from the "stable treasury". Bright enamels adorn the gold frame of the saddle of the “large outfit” of Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich (1637-1638, State Armory), made by master Ivan Popov “with comrades”.
Enamel sparkled on the smooth surfaces of items, was part of the filigree ornament, it was poured over the rounded surfaces of vessels and covered the relief of chased images. Enamel of various shades, dense and transparent, as if glowing from within, competed with precious stones. A typical example is the gold and enamel chalice, a contribution of the boyar A.I. Morozov in 1664 to the Chudov Monastery. Sapphires, emeralds, rubies and diamonds burn in multicolored enamel. Russian craftsmen had close contact with visiting Greek jewelers and craftsmen from European countries.
By the second half of the 17th century, a special Moscow style of small grass ornament was developed.
In Solvychegodsk, which became a prominent center of applied arts in the second half of the 17th century, the “Usolye enamel business” was developing in the workshops of the “eminent people” of the Stroganovs. Usolsky enamel is distinguished by the softness of the color of flower and grass painting against a light background (ill. 117). The object, filled with white enamel on the inside and outside, was painted with herbal ornaments, large tulips with succulent leaves and characteristic shading of colorful spots in places of shadow. There were also plot images: hunting scenes, compositions “Signs of the Zodiac”, “Five Senses” (silver bowl, late 17th century, State Armory).
From the workshops of the Stroganovs, the art of enamel spread throughout the Russian North. In Veliky Ustyug, the filigree ornament was covered with turquoise, green and black enamel with white, black and yellow accents in the form of dots. Such enamels, which adorned icon frames, have much in common with northern folk painting on wood (for example, silver tsata with enamel, 17th century, State Historical Museum).
Applied art flourished in the 17th century in the Posad towns of the Volga region: woodcarving, blacksmithing, tile making, silversmithing reached great heights and artistic originality. In the 17th century, the art of printing was developed in the cities of the Volga region. A colorful pattern was printed on canvases from carved wooden boards, prepared by special craftsmen. A high ornamental culture has developed in this industry.
Since the second half of the 17th century, facial sewing has moved further and further away from painting and, on the contrary, is moving closer to the art of jewelry. The brilliance of gold and silver, the sparkle of precious stones and pearls are now of paramount importance in sewing and are primarily appreciated by contemporaries (Nikola's shroud with life, second half of the 17th century, State Historical Museum).
Details of clothes were completely covered with precious embroidery: sometimes the whole of it. For example, the sakkos of Patriarch Nikon (1655, State Armory) is decorated with embroidered images of prophets and saints. Pearls were sewn along the contour of the image. The Stroganov sewing school of the middle of the 17th century stands out for its high technical mastery and monumentality of style. Here, alato sewing has reached great heights.
Along with facial sewing, decorative sewing gained wide scope in the second half of the 17th century. They were famous for the gold seamstresses of the “Tsarina’s Workshop Chamber”, who adorned saddles, towels, and shoulders of church clothes with embroidery. Threading with pearls, sewing with gold threads and silks had much in common with folk embroidery, and not only in the similarity of motives, but also in the sense of rhythm, line, color, in the very poetics of art. Characteristic is the cover with the image of Sergius of Radonezh with his life - the contribution of A. I. Stroganova to the Trinity-Sergius Monastery (1671).
The arts and crafts of the 17th century reflected the cultural upsurge experienced by Russia. On the one hand, a significant era of ancient Russian art is coming to an end, and on the other hand, the path to a new one is being paved.
In the last quarter of the 17th century, the first heralds of secular art of the 18th century were already visible - works appeared that carried a new worldview of the emerging time. The luxury of patterns is replaced by works of exceptional simplicity and rigor, such as the silver and niello stavets of Princess Sofya Alekseevna (1685, State Armory). The very range of household items expanded enormously, bringing applied art closer to everyday life. The mastery of performance is brought to exceptional artistry. In decorative art, the experience of Russian icon painting with its plastic beginning, decorative color and linearity was refracted. In all branches of applied art, a desire was manifested to convey the forms of nature, to multicolor. Sculptural juicy woodcarving replaces flat, with abstract forms. Often plots and techniques were borrowed from book art, for example, in the ornamentation of Usolye enamels or niello. The Piscator Bible, widely distributed among Russian masters, was the source of new trends. But nevertheless, all the influences of both the East and the West were refracted in ancient Russian art in a creative and original way.
Interest in life, realistic aspirations in arts and crafts expressed, as in painting, the formation of a new worldview that characterizes the era of a turning point at the turn of two centuries.
