| The matryoshka (nested doll) is the symbol of Russian folk art traditions.
Its origin, however, dates back only to the very end of the 19th century. The author of «matryoshka» was the well-known painter
S.Malyutin, one of the creators of the Russian version of «art-noveau», the head of «Talashkino», artistic workshops of Princess M.Tenisheva situated near
Smolensk. The form of «matryoshka» based on the doll nesting principle was borrowed by the artist from the East, but the author found a lucky
combination of the shape and the paintings, which created the image of a Russian girl in the national costume, which was familiar to children and adults
from folk tales. The «matryoshka» principle started soon to be used by toy-makers from Sergiev Posad. Initially, dolls were painted by local icon-painters,
hence the quality of early «matryoshkas» was very high. | |
