Art of the Russian Matryoshka Book

"Art of the Matryoshka"

Art of the Russian Matryoshka.
Rett Ertl and Rick Hibberd.

Contents

1. A History: From Japanese Doll to Symbol of Russia
2. How Matryoshki Are Made: First You Take a Linden Tree
3. Classifying Matryoshki: Every Face an Eyelash Different
4. Patterns and Themes: A Story Within a Story
5. The Cities and Factories: Made in the Russian Motherland
6. The Artists: Entrepreneurs in the New Russia
7. Collecting Matryoshki: One is Never Enough
Bibliography, Glossary of Trade and Russian Words, Index

Beautifully illustrated in full color, 240 pages, hardcover with dustjacket.

Use order #ART1-MAT. Publisher's price $49.95. Special $45.
2 Shipping Options: Free Media Mail Shipping or $8 for Expedited Shipping. Please specify preferred option.
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SYNOPSIS

      The Art of the Russian Matryoshka is a comprehensive and wonderfully illustrated book on Russian nesting dolls, aka Matryoshka. It covers history, how and where they are made, the many styles of dolls, and their better-known creators. Author Rett Ertl uses his thirty years of experience in Russia to present this information in a straightforward and engaging style, while combining the story of nesting dolls into the story of Russia’s development. His meta-conclusion is that these are not simply dolls within dolls, but themes within themes, much like life itself.
      The history of the matryoshka is recent, dating to the 1890s, when a Russian traveler returned from Japan after purchasing a doll within a doll toy. The Far East knew long before about combining dolls, tables, trunks, and other objects for ecomony of space. The story goes that the first Russian doll was turned on a lathe by a master toy maker in Sergiev Posad, home of the well-known monastery, as well as several wooden toy workshops that sprung up nearby. The doll was soon widely copied and produced, soon to become the symbol of Russia that it is today. In addition to a photo of the first Russian matryoshka, the history chapter includes original photos of several of Russia’s first matryoshka artists. For historical research, Ertl commissioned papers by three leading Russian authorities on toys and folk art. The tools and techniques for making matryoshka dolls are essentially unchanged since the time of the first dolls, as the photos make astonishingly evident. The book shows and describes each step in the laborious manufacturing process, from the cutting and drying of linden and birch logs, to the preparation of the wood and turning it on a lathe, to the priming, painting and lacquering of the dolls. The photos in this section, by co-author Rick Hibberd, reveal a Russia that most would think had disappeared long ago.
      In classifying and describing the immense variety of shapes, sizes and styles of dolls, Ertl brings to bear his almost ten years as an importer of Russian crafts. He has applied the product and marketing sense of a businessman to survey the full range of these dolls, from toys and souvenirs, to works of fine art. In the fourth chapter, the decorative and artistic themes are categorized, each with delightful examples, all of which are illustrated in full color. The chapter on cities and factories describes the "Matryoshka Trail", beginning in Sergiev Posad, which is still a major production center, moving to Polkhovsky Maidan, where matryoshka making is literally a backyard business, and includes the large factories in Semyonov, Kirov and Nolinsk. Photos of the factories and descriptions of how they have developed provide another unique perspective on matryoshka making and today’s Russia.
      Production has blossomed since the fall of the Soviet Union. It's not unusual to find matryoshka dolls for sale in ethnic shops beyond Russia. Artists can create whatever they wish and have the freedom to sell them competitively. Creating matryoshka dolls has also provided a living to people who have lost the jobs that they held in the former planned economy. The chapter on artists gives a brief look into the lives of some of these independent matryoshka artists, some of whom were visited in their studios - typically a corner of their homes.
      Ertl draws on his decades of experience to give advice on collecting matryoshk dolls in the final chapter. Dolls shown in this chapter and throughout the book come from Ertl’s own shelves, several collectors in the United States, Russian museums, and other importers and specialty shops (including us). Readers are encouraged to collect matryoshka dolls as an accessible way to participate in a Russian folk art tradition that is tightly tied to the past, yet has evolved to reflect the fascinating changes occurring in Russia today.

Beautifully illustrated in full color, 240 pages, hardcover with dustjacket.
Use order #ART1-MAT. Publisher's price $49.95. Special $45.
2 Shipping Options: Free Media Mail Shipping or $8 for Expedited Shipping. Please specify preferred option.

How to Order

Matryoshka Index Page
Classic Russian Matryoshkas
More Books on Russian Matryoshkas

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