Our Chinese department:
09:30 Meeting with a guide at the railway station in Kovrov. The sign "Crafts of the Russian land".
Kovrov is the second largest and largest industrial center of the Vladimir region. The main enterprise is the armory named after Degtyarev, who produced machine guns and supplied our army with weapons during the Second World War.
Museum of clay toys. Master class: sculpting or coloring a clay toy.
Lunch at a cafe in the city.
Transfer to Mstera (54 km).
Revenge. There is something fabulous about this name. Some magical images, wondrous nature, outlandish animals, fancy temples, and bizarre chambers appear before my eyes.…
Mstera is the largest lacquer miniature center in Russia. Less is known about embroidery (belaya msterskaya glade) and about jewelry. The locals are peculiar people, very resourceful and talented. Most of them are artisans.
The remoteness from the main highways forced the Russians to spin as best they could. And works of art began to come out from under their hands: icons, lacquer boxes with miniature paintings, lace, embroidery, hammered and jewelry.
Sightseeing tour of the village. The Msterka river, the high bank, the silhouette of the Holy Epiphany Monastery, the graceful domes of churches and the bulky contour of the bell tower are the indisputable architectural face of the village. Monument to the Carp — locals are called "carp".
Holy Epiphany Monastery. The courtyard of the Vyaznikovsky Annunciation Convent. There are about 40 monuments of civil architecture in Mster, which include stone and wooden residential buildings, shops and warehouses. Many of them are already about 150 years old.
The Moscow Art Museum. The museum presents the best examples of Hungarian art crafts — embroidery, lacquer miniature, paintings by local artists.
A demonstration master class for children and adults at the museum's exposition opens up the opportunity to get to know more closely the creative traditions of the masters of Mstera: with the painting of miniature lacquer paintings "Boxes of the Mstera chernolak pattern".
Master class on painting. Just inspiration, flight of fancy and good mood are enough. The materials, equipment and secrets of their craft will be provided by professional craftsmen.
Hungarian embroidery. Hungarian embroidery is famous for the fact that products with it, having no face and no underside, look beautiful on both sides. Elegant small patterns of floral ornaments, delicate images of human figures and architectural forms are skillfully created by the Hungarian craftsmen.
The colored surface is the so—called "Vladimir seam", which is made with large stitches with a predominance of red. It is believed that only the Mster embroiderers are proficient in this complex technique, continuing the artistic traditions of the past.
Getting to know the craft, meeting with an embroiderer.
Transfer to Shuya.
Visit to the Shuiskaya Vodka company store. The products can be purchased at factory prices so that when you return home, you can impress your friends with unique tinctures.
Accommodation at the hotel.
Dinner for an additional fee is 600 rubles, paid together with the ticket.
