FOIL ICONS OF THE 19TH CENTURY. ON THE ISSUE OF THE CRAFTSMEN’S STRATEGIES

The article describes the development of a project on the study of Soviet icons and foil icons in image cases of the 19th century, which is held at the Center for Visual Studies of the Middle Ages and Modern Times of the Russian State University for the Humanities. The author studies the genesis of Soviet icons and describes craft of foil icons in image cases of the second half of the 19th – 20th centuries. The reasons for the popularity of prayer images of such a type are considered. In the 20th century they became the “mother model” for Soviet icons – the craftsmen copied, with the help of new materials and tools, foil icons of the 19th century. The article also refers to several centers for the pre-revolutionary craft of icon in image cases. The characteristic features of the traditions that existed in the Tver and Vologda provinces are highlighted. Using visual material, the author demonstrates the strategy of “transferring” church art into the foiled icon. Firstly, the masters of the 19th century copied in the icons in image cases the decorative elements – patterns, cartouches, etc. – that they saw on the church images. Secondly, craftsmen in some regions sought to imitate the church interior itself. Columns, curtains, floor candlesticks with candles, etc. were created of foil (as well as paper, wax, beads). As a result, the home foil icon not only resembled a church icon in its morphology, but also turned into a miniature likeness of a church transferred to a home space