After prolonged abstinence during strict Christmas fasting, after the noisy New Year's feasts and the bright joy of the Nativity of Christ, after the baptismal holidays that follow him, the fierce Shrovetide sets in. Having come to us through the centuries, she is now perceived not only as a tribute to ancient traditions, but also as an introduction to certain sacred actions.
Echoes of Paganism
As soon as this amazing period of time is called at the end of February - the beginning of March, on the verge of winter and spring, the merry and satisfying treats before the long Easter fast are Slavic peoples! And the
Cheese Week in the church calendar, and the Pancake Union in the people! Remarkable
winter fun, festivities, sleigh rides and fist fights, a solemn procession with a scarecrow of Pancake week and burning it in honor of the wires that had already bothered the ordinary people of snow and frost - all these colorful, emotional actions attracted the attention of many representatives of art. Especially the lively and vivid embodiment was reflected in the painting holiday. Studying art canvases, we are faced with a rare phenomenon: various Russian artists have a painting "Pancake week". Why did they give their works the same name, what is the difference between each - we will talk about this in this article.
History and traditions
In the pre-Christian period of life of the Eastern Slavs, current Russians, Ukrainians and Belarusians, the onset of the new year was associated with the spring equinox, the awakening of nature, the beginning of a new life cycle, the cult of fertility and the memory of ancestors. The farmers, who, in their way of life, were mainly the ancient Slavs, were completely dependent on the crops in their fields. The painting “Shrovetide” by Semyon Shemyakin (2001) reflects one of the most important elements of the holiday - the burning of a scarecrow, the ashes of which were scattered across all the peasant plots. It was believed that in this way people increase the fertility of the earth, stimulate its fertile beginning.
The second meaning of the rite
Another painting “Shrovetide” - another contemporary artist Anatoly Nikolayevich Shelyakin (2005) draws our attention to another semantic moment of the holiday. The creation of a family and the birth of children, the continuation of the family - this, according to the ancients, is the main purpose of man. Therefore, various funs were encouraged at Shrovetide, during which youth could more freely express their feelings. The traditions of honoring boys and girls, young men and women who are able to give birth, are closely connected with the same cult of fertility and the revival of life. From here came the Pancake week bride-groom shows, sleigh rides of youth of both sexes, and even comic persecution of bachelors.
Communication with your family
And, finally, the painting “Shrovetide” is also our contemporary - Anna Cherkashina (2002). She addresses the viewer to the third semantic aspect of the holiday - commemoration of the ancestors who have gone into the world, forgiveness of insults that during the year family members, relatives and friends, neighbors voluntarily or involuntarily inflicted on each other. Pancakes as the main element of the Shrovetide table in Cherkashina's painting especially accurately reflect the ancient Slavic memorial essence of the holiday.
Master of the genre
A series of paintings under the general name was written by a wonderful artist
Boris Kustodiev. Shrovetide is presented in different versions, but with the same degree of talent and accurate transmission of the peculiar flavor of the festival. The series of works was created over a relatively short period of 4 years - from 1916 to 1920, 5 full-fledged paintings and 2 versions of the same painting, executed in different colors, emphasize the artist’s particular interest in the chosen topic. How does Kustodiev approach her embodiment? The Shrovetide of 1916 (one of the paintings of this time) is a typical Russian
winter landscape. The sky is colored by sunset and blazing with scarlet and gold. Its rays shine on snowy roofs and pavements, light rainbow lights on trees wrapped in furry fur coats. The domes and spiers of churches rushing into the heavens rise above. And on the streets people are having fun and having fun, the fair is noisy, not wanting to disperse, merry-go-rounds flash, painted sleds rush through. A wide Russian soul, a great dare and love of life - such is the emotional background of the picture. It charges optimism and vivacity, excites the imagination of the audience and arouses the desire to study the life, history and traditions of its people. Of course, our description of the painting “Shrovetide” is far from complete. But we hope that it will arouse the curiosity of the readers of the article, and they will also want to learn more about Russian antiquity and Russian art.
Instead of an afterword
As you can see, the paintings of the Maslenitsa artists are diverse in genre and performance. Landscapes and still lifes, portrait sketches, styling as a popular popular print in the works of masters of domestic painting not only reveal to us certain moments of culture, life and beliefs of ancestors, but also bring the past closer, making it clear and dear. Art, like a time machine, takes us from one era to another, not allowing us to lose touch with our roots and making us once again feel our blood connection with all of humanity.