Description:
This masterful creation was composed by the thoroughly talented Yuriy Pozhidayev from the village of Palekh. His pieces have a unique elegance about them that captures the medieval essence of the tales he frequently uses as subject matter. Color and ornamentation work wonders when applied by an experienced hand. This piece is a great example of that.
The box features a scene from the Russian fairy-tale of Fedot the Rifleman. Here we can see the tsar's servant Fedot who caught for the tsar the golden antlered deer. The tsar wanted to marry Fedot's wife, and decided to kill Ivan by giving him unrealizable tasks. Fedot's wife was the sorceress, and that is why it was easy for her to help Fedot. The tsar's commandant instructed by Baba-Yaga assisted the tsar to invent more and more unrealizable tasks. One of the tasks was to catch the golden antlered deer from the magic island. Ivan had to get to this island on board of the ramshackle ship together with the team of seafarers who were the most confirmed drunkards. The island was very far to reach, and the tsar hoped that the ship would sink because it was very old, and the team of seafarers was too drunk to help Fedot. With the help of the wife's magic spell, Ivan could fulfill this difficult task.
The palette contains very bold and vivacious colors. The predominance is given to reds, blues and greens. Gold and aluminum paints are used to detail the scene throughout. Gold and aluminum are also used to decorate the box's exterior with intricate floral and leafy patterns.
The box is made out of paper-mache. Black lacquer covers the exterior and red lacquer covers the interior of the box. The lid is hinged at the left, and the box rests on four legs. The work is signed with the artist's name, Palekh, and the year of 2006.
