Birch Bark Lace

History

In the early 1800s, craftsmen from the Shemogsa River area (near Velkii Ustiug) began creating birch bark containers with exquisite openwork known as "northern lace". By late century, the craft had gained renown from work done by a highly talented craftsman named Ivan Veprev. His birch bark engravings had popularized the craft and gained him international recognition at the 1900 Paris World’s Fair. As the craft gained distinction, Veprev began training the craft to local artists from nearby Kurova-Navolok. Ultimately, his students would make “northern lace” a well-known and ubiquitous craft throughout northern Russian.

As the craft grew, birch bark carvers recognized the need to protect themselves from unscrupulous middlemen (so often detrimental to other handicrafts at the turn-of-the-century). Shortly after the Soviets gained power, Shemogsa birch bark carvers organized into a cooperative. Within two decades, the cooperative would have over ninety craftsmen (many named Veprev incidentally).

However, in the early 1930s, the cooperative would split over whether to begin engraving Soviet symbols and Kremlin scenes. A new cooperative named Solidarity was soon established in nearby Panshino to retain traditional designs. Today, both Panshino and Kurova-Navolok are known for creating high-quality birch bark articles.

Preparation
Kurova-Navolok villagers traditionally strip birch bark when it is ripe in May (about 2 days). Once swollen birch bark has been found, they strip it from the tree in ribbons, plates, or cylinder cuts. The bark’s thin white upper layer is the removed, leaving the remainder to be conditioned in water. Once dried, it is sanded and polished. When done correctly, the bark has a leather-like feel and can be worked as such. To create a watertight fit, two birch bark layers are placed perpendicular to each other (one inside the other). Cylindrical containers (tuyses) contain birch strips slit on their edge for fastening to each other.

Openwork Design

Traditional birch bark containers contain lids that display geometrical fretwork tetrahedral in appearance. In contrast, older birch bark openwork resembles ironwork patterns from Velikii Ustiug or ivory carving from Kholmogory. Contact between craftsmen using different media was not infrequent, producing popular ornamental patterns that have lasted for centuries. Other patterns came from printed illustrations, especially Symbols and Patterns (Symbola et emblemata). The latter, published under Peter the Great, became a frequently referenced design directory during the 16^th-19^th centuries.

In the mid 1800s, floral or figural engraving scenes (animals, birds, wild flowers, and fairy tales) were also highly popular. As with many Russian folk crafts, gryphons and bereginy were common. As the century progressed, birch bark containers began displaying figural scenes with a more realistic perspective. Likewise, containers depicting cityscapes (especially nearby Velikii Ustiug) became highly popular as well.

Design Methods

Birch bark craftsmen reserve their highly complex designs for the container lid. Accordingly, these designs are drawn to scale on paper before any tracing is performed on wood. When ready, the artist either punches a pattern with an awl or inscribes geometrical lines with a stylus (helping the artist define forms for subsequent cutting). Impressing birch bark with a hardwood cutout design is another option. Before incorporating the geometrical design pattern into/onto the container lid, the excised birch bark layers are stained and polished with wax.

Ornamental designs must be carefully chosen to complement the birch bark's texture and color. Though bark texture lines may integrate favorably with a small-scale design, they generally distract in larger-scale depictions such as floral motifs. To overcome this, the craftsman will introduce intricate floral detailing and a complementary geometric design. The finished product reveals a distinctive mixture of floral and geometric design.

Note: For a more decorative effect, carvers may occasionally cut through the container’s side to create a silhouetted design

Artists

Stephen Bocharev

Ivan Veprev

Nicholai Veprev

Bibliography

Hilton, Alison. Russian Folk Art. Indiana University Press. 1996.

Ilyin, M. Russian Decorative Folk Art. Moscow, 1959.

Odom, Anne. The Art of the Russian North. Hillwood Museum & Gardens. 2001.

Ovsyannikov in Russian Folk Arts and Crafts. Progress Publishers. 1968.

Pronin, Alexander. Russian Folk Arts. Barnes.1975