Filimonovskaya painting and patterns. History of the Filimonov toy

The history of Filimon's toys, according to some calculations of historians and archaeologists, began another 1000 years ago. It is believed that during archaeological excavations near the Tula region, one of the first, the most primitive, clay toys of that period was found. How accurately established, they were made during the reign of Ivan the Terrible. Because of some peculiarities these toys were called whistles. They were small figures of birds, animals and people, which were just the design for a whistling mechanism.

Destiny of the whistles

It is believed that in ancient times, during paganism, whistling could scare off an evil demon or spirit or, on the contrary, attract the attention of the Sun God and ask him to send rain or drought to the ground, and much more. That's why such a whistling figure was kept in every house.

Filimonovskaya painting appeared on toys already in the beginning of the 19th century. As the story goes, its name was Filimonov's toy from a runaway convict - Filimon.

Grandfather was a master not only in the pottery business, but also a master in making clay toys. He was the first person who began to paint clay toys, which made his invaluable contribution to the development of art not only in the 19th century, but also in the future.

In the village where he sheltered, there was a deposit of blue clay, which served him as a material. This village was located near the city of Odoev and, thanks to its history, in the future was called Filimonovka, in honor of the master.

Working on a toy

Subsequently, almost all the men in the village began to make pots of blue clay. Thanks to this art, they managed to feed their family. Not only men, but also women, and even children took part in modeling. It was they who were engaged in making whistles in their free time from work in the field and at home. This was one of their favorite pastimes of that time.

Sometimes women together with their daughters, who at that time could be no more than 7-8 years old, sat in a circle and, singing beautiful old Russian folk songs, molded their clay toys.

The Importance of Philemon's Toy

Filimonov's toy was bought home, bought for a gift. The presence of the toy was a very good sign. It was believed that she brings happiness, luck, family well-being to the house, and also protects from slander and evil spells.

Filimonov's toy for children was a so-called guard, a guard, which protected the kids from evil. Many of the historians believe that at the dawn of its creation such a whistle was not a children's toy. It had a completely different purpose. If you look closely, then on each figure you can see magical signs (Filimonov's patterns) that have a certain meaning.

The shape of the toy is also interesting. She suggests that each of them means something.

Roasting in the oven

Throughout the year, people were engaged in making clay objects, and then, on one of the spring days, a big celebration was held in the center of a large field before the beginning of its processing. It consisted in burning all the clay products, and after the holiday, take them to the market for sale.

First, they dug a large hole in the center of the field, which was covered with bricks, making brick stands (dishes) under the dishes (such an extraordinary furnace was called a horn), and then the straw was set on fire, which was spread on the dishes. After the straw burned, they waited for the clay to cool down, and after that they took each of their own, now white, products home.

The main place on the shelves was occupied by clay jugs, and between the jugs, women put their handicrafts. Interestingly, after firing, the blue clay became a beautiful white color. Filimonov's toy, a photo of which can be seen in books and magazines devoted to Russian folk art, but in the modern world and in electronic sources, has this distinctive feature.

It is very convenient. In order to paint in the future, it does not need to be covered with a special paint for the base. The burnt clay is already prepared for work.

Filimonov's toys. Their images

It is generally accepted that Filimonov toys have a certain form, in which there is a specific designation.

One of the most important images is the image of a woman. It is believed that the image of a woman (ladies) personifies the image of a mother whose main goal is, of course, the continuation of the family and, in general, all life on earth. Visually this figure looks very unusual.

Another image is an animal. Bear carries a symbol of masculinity, strength, and also embodies the coming of spring - a new life. Deer - a symbol of family well-being and happiness in marriage, the warmth of relations between spouses. Traditionally, the deer is presented on the wedding day to the newlyweds as a guard for their future family. The horse is the embodiment of all living things. It was believed that the horse - a symbol of water, sun, fertility. The cow is the embodiment of vigor and strength of mind.

Near the woman, as a rule, birds were always depicted. It was the birds in the old days that were considered the image of the resurrection of all life on Earth. The dawn, the awakening of the earth, of nature is all the embodiment of birds.

None of the toys is like real figures of animals and birds. The figures of people remind them very distantly. To understand which of the people is fashioned out of clay, it is possible only thanks to the details of the clothes on which certain elements of the Filimonov painting are present.

A woman, as a rule, clothes consists of a skirt-bell and blouses, and a man - a bright shirt and pants.

Filimonovskaya painting is very unusual, bold, fascinating look. Patterns on clothes speak about the most important thing - about the connection of man with nature.

Many people want to know how to draw a Philemon toy. The outfit is a bright, clear drawings, randomly scattered over clothes. On clothes they drew stains and circles, leaves and dots, dashes and asterisks and many other elements of the painting. The woman's skirt was always multicolored, a blouse of rich bright crimson color, and the hat was decorated with a bright border. The man must have been given a shirt.

Filimonovskaya painting. Face coloring

The face was always the same. On a white background, we drew our eyes and eyebrows in blue or black. Sometimes my eyes were green. The shape of the eyes was always the same. Eyes - dashes. The mouth must necessarily have been crimson.

Never allowed to draw expressive facial features. It was believed that the figure - this is a guard, so it was the face of the toy should scare away evil spirits.

Primary colors

One of the hallmarks of the Filimonov painting is the color of the paints used. It was possible to apply shades of only 3 colors: crimson, yellow and green. And only occasionally it was allowed to use blue and violet paints.

Another Philemon toy, the painting of which was always the same, is an animal. His body and neck were always painted across, and the color scheme used the same: green, yellow and crimson. As a result, the animal was colored with multicolored strips with a muzzle of red or green.

It is interesting that the whistle is a Filimon toy, the coloring of which is not made with special brushes for drawing, but with brushes made of chicken feathers.

Rite of "falconry"

Every man at least once in his life, but he heard such an expression. However, few people correctly understand the meaning of the phrase "to arrange a whistle". People think that this expression means a quarrel or a clarification of relationships, that is, the opportunity to prove something to someone.

In fact, in the middle of the 19th century it was one of the most beautiful, interesting rituals. On a certain day of the year, absolutely everyone went out into the street and started singing, dancing and all together whistling in whistles. By these actions they wanted to bow before the dead relatives, it was a certain memory rite. After the perfect actions, people could ask God for whatever they wanted. Some caused rain, others thanked God for a good harvest or just for good weather. Everyone around was happy and enjoyed life.

Filimonov's modeling in our time

For many, the Filimon toy, the coloring of clay figurines, is of historical significance. At the beginning of the 20th century, the masters of the Filimonov painting remained very few. If it were not for Nikolai Denisov's interest in folk art in the 50s and 80s of the 20th century, the secrets of mastery would forever be a thing of the past.

It is thanks to the creation of a group of graduates of the Abramtsevo school and their unification with the descendants of the Filimonov masters, this creativity has reached a new level.

The painting of the Filimonov toy, as well as the creation of its clay foundation, takes quite a long time. For several days (approximately 3-5, depending on the size of the toy), the figure must be constantly smoothed with wet hands. This is done in order to remove the small cracks that occur when the product dries out - a characteristic feature of blue clay.

Only after the toy has completely dried, it is sent to the oven, where it becomes a beautiful white color. And only then it begins to paint.

Children and beautiful toys

A great deal of encouragement and support was given to classes with such products in pre-school institutions. Filimonovskaya painting in kindergarten - one of the creative projects, firmly entrenched in the training program for toddlers.

In the process of drawing (the children write with watercolor), the teacher introduces preschool children to the history of creating the Philemon toy, the main principles of its coloring, and also introduces children to folk art, making them feel and understand how art affects our life in the future.

Museum of Filimon's toys

Throughout Russia there are many museums with Filimonov toys. The largest, specialized museum, is located in the Tula region in Odoev.

Here you can fully immerse yourself in the era of Filimon's painting, as well as try to dazzle yourself with a toy made of blue clay. As a result, each memory of this amazing place will be left not only by Filimonov's toy made by own hands, a photo in the museum and the impression of the miracle seen, but most importantly - the experience of communicating with the real masters of the ancient craft.