Valentina Konovalova of Palekh painted this wonderful piece depicting the opera, "The Snowmaiden." It was written originally by Alexander Ostrovsky, one of Russia's great playwrights, for music that was to be composed by Piotr Tchaikovsky. It became a full fledged opera, and not too many years after Tchaikovsky wrote his musical score, another great Russian composer by the name of Rimsky Korsakov wrote his version of music to accompany the tale.
In the composition that has been painted here, the artist has five scenes from the tale working in the same area. The central composition is at the end when Mizgir the merchant professes his love and the Snowmaiden melts because she feels love, too. She melts because of a curse put on her by Yarilo, the sun-god, who is represented by the bright orange orb behind the trees. Then in each corner of the lid she paints other scenes from the story that play an integral role in bringing it to a close. Clockwise from top left the scenes are: the Snowmaiden on one of her numerous walks through the forest at night, Lyel trying to woo her without result, Fairy Spring giving her daughter the ability and blessing to love, and Mizgir following an apparition of the Snowmaiden that he cannot catch up to.
Egg-tempera paint is the main medium used to paint this composition. The colors are very bright and alternate from cool to warm tones in each scene. By leaving the voids in the background black, the figures, trees, and characters all seem to pop off the box with a great infusion of life. Each character has their own unique body language, giving each scene its own personality. To help with the movement in the bodies the artist uses gold and aluminum to highlight, outline, and make vivid the contours and intricacies drawn into the composition. The layout is balanced, which helps the transitions between the various scenes seem very smooth and natural. Everything, from the color usage to the line structuring to the brushwork, flows with ease along this paper-mache canvas.
The box is made out of paper-mache made in Palekh. Black lacquer covers the exterior and red lacquer covers the interior of the box; clear lacquer goes on in layers that are polished down giving the box a reflective glow. Gold ornamentation with aluminum accents frames the scene, while an identical, expanded design wraps around the sides of the box. The box has a hinge above the composition and rests on four rounded feet. Upon completing the work on this piece the artist writes Palekh, 2002, and signs her name along the bottom of the scene.
Materials: paper-mache, egg-tempera paint, gold, aluminum, and lacquer.
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About Artist Konovalova, Valentina Vitalyevna:
Konovalova (Barynina) Valentina Vitalievna was born in 1959 in the village of Palekh.
Comes from the family of painters. Her father is a famous Palekh aratist V.K. Barynin.
Studied at the Palekh Art School in 1975-1980.
Worked in the Palekh studios of lacquer miniature painting in 1980-1989.
Themes of her works: literature, genre scenes.
Bratchikova Ye. K., 1996, "MINIATURISTS OF PALEKH. NAME REFERENCE", RUSSLIT, Moscow, 5-7739-0001-7, 5-86508-035-0
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read about Konovalova, Valentina Vitalyevna
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Item Specifications:
- Title: "The Snowmaiden 2002"
- Price: $1100.00
- Status: SOLD
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