The painting “Bookshop” by Viktor Vasnetsov is a work that reveals the special role of folk art in peasant life
“Bookshop” – a picture painted by the master of fairy-tale epic painting Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov. The central theme of the work is the importance of folk art in the lives of ordinary people. The plot reflects a realistic, everyday scene of a fair trade in the rural outback. The counter of the temporary wooden building is littered with popular prints, sheets of fairy tales, and paper icons. A strong man with an ax in his belt holds a piece of paper in his hands, carefully examining its contents. Nearby stands a handsome bearded old man in a long robe. He explains to the man the meaning of the image. The women from the queue listen to the words of the elder.
From modest clothes and covered heads, it is clear that both women are believers. To the left of the counter, two boys crouched down to the illustrations. Hidden under a canopy, the seller vigilantly monitors his simple goods. A bright sunny day, a flock of pigeons on the roof help to create a festive image of the fair. Each of the heroes of the masterpiece is strictly individual. The artist managed to convey the harmony and integrity of the work through color balancing.
Name of the painting: “Bookshop”.
Author: Viktor Vasnetsov (1848-1926).
Year of writing: 1876
Size: 84 x 66.3 cm.
Style: Realism.
Genre: Household.
Technique: Oil painting.
Material: Canvas.
Location: State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow.
Viktor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov – an outstanding painter of the late XIX
The artist went beyond the limits of traditional art, reviving the national romantic ideals and the Russian original spirit. Vasnetsov was actively engaged in everyday genre from 1873 to 1879. The paintings painted during this period brought him fame as a talented genre painter who knows the life of the people and is able to reproduce it expressively. They became for the painter a kind of pass to the creative environment of the Wanderers.
Vasnetsov from a young age collected old popular prints – a graphic form of folk art that arose in the era of Peter the Great. The creations of unknown Russian masters played an important role in the life of society and represented a rich folklore material. Peasants and representatives of urban estates replaced icons, books, newspapers, and interior decorations with lubok. The artist saw in this phenomenon of mass culture a moral expression of the people’s concepts of happiness and beauty.
The painting “Bookshop” by Viktor Vasnetsov, in its truthfulness, liveliness and serenity, fully corresponds to the mood traditionally inherent in Russian folk art. It awakens thoughts about the importance of education and enlightenment of the population living in the Russian hinterland.
