Vologda Lace from the Collection of the Kirillo-Belozersky Museum-Reserve

The museum started to form the collection of lace articles right after its establishment in 1924. Now it includes items made of gold and silver threads in the 18-19^th centuries which decorated church objects and priests’ vestments and the lace things of the 19^th-20^th centuries.

The Vologda lace has a rich history. The earliest lace articles which have come down to us date back to the 17^th century. The lace made of gold and silver threads decorated rich secular clothes and church vestments. Lace making turned into trade in the middle of the 19^th century. Hundreds and later thousands of women made lace in the vast Vologda province and the neighbouring districts of the Novgorod province.

The lace-making art of Vologda continued to develop in the 20^th century. Since 1918, lace-makers started to unite in artles under the direction of the Artelsoyuz, then the Vologda Lace Union which was reorganized in the Vologda Lace Association “Snowflake” in the early 1960s.

Preserving the tradition of the Vologda lace, professional designers and talented lace-makers create extraordinary works, modern in their form and artistic performance, which are used in our life.

The exhibition presented oeuvres of a galaxy of gifted artists: Galina Nikitichna Mamrovskaya, Angelina Nikolaevna Rakcheeva, Nadezhda Valerievna Veselova, Marina Yurievna Palnikova, and Tatyana Nikolaevna Smirnova. They designed articles for mass production and unique exhibition panels.

The breadth of artistic subjects and motives was reflected in the works of the leadings artists of the Lace Association “Snowflake”. Nature and architectural masterpieces are subject to the complicated interweaving of threads. Masters create both chamber motives and solemn and epic articles.

Artists, masters-experimenters, technicians making copies, and lace-makers were repeatedly awarded for high artistic level of the works and execution: they received medals and diplomas at different fairs and exhibitions in our country and abroad. Most of the creators whose works were displayed in the museum were members of the Union of Russian Artists. Galina Nikitichna Mamrovskaya and Angelina Nikolaevna Rakcheeva are Honoured Artists of Russia.

This exhibition told about lace-making as one of the most labour-intensive kind of folk art, gave a chance to trace the creative search in the development of traditional ways of lace-making, new forms and subjects, use of colour and texture of threads.

The lace articles of the leading artists contained the best what had been achieved in the lace-making practice over the last years.