T. M. Stepanskaya, L. I. Nekhvyadovich
172
A tendency to draw upon Russian popular
prints and folk art is
demonstrated in much Russian art of the 20
th
century. The development of
this tendency was connected with the desire to create an original national
style. To demonstrate this, the works of painters such as E. Strulev, N.
Nesterova, V. Sumarev, A. Ishin may be cited.
The consolidation of the role of ethnocultural traditions in art is also
found in the creative output of the Vladimir School of Landscape Painting.
A central movement in visual arts, the Vladimir School originated with the
creative work of V. Y. Yukin (1920), K. N. Britov (1925) and V. G.
Kokurin (1924). The nature of Mstera town
35
and Akinshino village
36
in
the Vladimir Region
37
formed the subject-matter for these landscape
painters, who created a new artistic language,
characterised by a wide
range of expressive means and support from Russian ethnocultural
traditions. In other words, the source of the style of this school of
landscape painting was nature and folk art. The creative methods of
these artists were based on the principles of ornamental painting,
incorporating stylistic features of folk art into the image-bearing system
of professional fine art.
As a Russian artistic community, the Vladimir School of Landscape
Painting existed up until the beginning of the 1980s. However, in the
second half of that decade, fine art expert O. N. Nikulina, analysing
materials in exhibitions, noted the artists had broken away from the idea of
collectivity.
38
The value of the Vladimir School was not limited by the
results of the artistic works of individual members. Much as with other
artistic associations, the Vladimir School foreshadowed changes in Russian
art of the turn of the 21
st
century, namely, an appeal to the ethnocultural
traditions of the artist’s own region. In this period, other associations with
similar aims were being formed in Moscow, the Volga Region, the Far
East
39
and Siberia. All these regional schools, distinct in their character and
composition, breadth of activity and significance to the history of Russian
art, had a similar social-cultural meaning: they were considered workshops
of the regional style.
Thus, the artistic school is a relevant source of information for the
study of ethno-art. Its originality arises from the historical conditions that
35
Mstera: an urban settlement in Vyaznikov District, Vladimir Administrative Division,
Russia.
36
Akinshino: a village in Novomoskovsk Administrative Division, Moscow, Russia.
37
The Vladimir Region: part of the Central Federal District of the Russian Federation.
38
Nikulina 1987, p. 45.
39
The Far East: the Eastern part of Russia, including the regions of river basins running
into the Pacific Ocean, as well as Sakhalin Island, Kuril Islands, Wrangel Island and
Komandorskie and Shantarskie Islands.
www.cclbsebes.ro/muzeul-municipal-ioan-raica.html / www.cimec.ro
Ethnocultural Traditions as a Basis of National Originality of Schools of Art
173
led to the formation of an ethnically-oriented mentality, from a complex
interweaving of worldviews which have their base in local traditions, united
in the formal-content and image-bearing structure of its artworks.
The consideration of all these factors in combination is necessary to
understand the source of originality in local art schools from the broader
perspective of the history of art.
The use of ethnocultural traditions in the fine art of the turn of the
21
st
century is connected with the processes of of globalisation, localisation
and decentralisation. The transformation of the cultural context in which
national identity is formed determined the nature of expressions of ethnicity
found in Russian art: at first we see the non-purposeful manifestation of
local influences based on the artist’s own psychological basis in
ethnocultural traditions; then comes conscious confirmation of ethnic
origin, introducing a programmatic character to their works. This tendency
highlights the need for further study of this subject.
Ethnocultural Traditions as a Basis of
National Originality of Schools of Art
(Abstract)
In contemporary art, the problems of historical roots, ethnic and cultural identity, and
intercultural dialogue are very relevant. Ethno-cultural traditions are naturally a part of the
formation of schools of art; they contribute to their characteristics and provide a way to
look at the school’s national identity.
This article aims to define the role of ethnic and cultural traditions in shaping the
ethnocultural identity of Russian schools of art, based on the works of Russian artists.
Its findings are as follows:
1. A school of art is a historically-constituted, stable community of artists,
characterised
by a common ideology, principles of creative method, and style.
2. Ethnocultural traditions represent a mechanism for the conservation,
development and broadcast of the ethnocultural experience of the people and their values,
created in the process of historical development.
3. The uniqueness of the natural and geographical environment; the common
historical past of ethnic groups; the multiethnic and multi-religious character of images
from mythology, folklore, arts and crafts; and creative method as a set of principles
reflecting the ethnic worldview are all part of creating the ethnocultural uniqueness of the
Russian School of art.
4. The Russian School of art is unique, valuable in itself and yet international; it is a
part of world heritage, presented through the “cultural codes” of Russia. Its continuity
manifests in the inheritance and preservation of ethnocultural traditions, artistic and
aesthetic ideas and the principles of realistic painting.
With the development of globalisation, which proclaims the equality of all the
traditions of the multi-faceted world, this topic has significant research potential. The
results of this study suggest the direction of further theoretical and methodological
questions regarding the relationship of ethnos and art, such as exploring the degree of
www.cclbsebes.ro/muzeul-municipal-ioan-raica.html / www.cimec.ro