"Secrets of Wood" (Tayny dereva) is an interregional festival of artistic woodworking masters that has been held in Nizhny Novgorod since 1996.[3] The annual event brings together decorative and applied arts masters from Nizhny Novgorod, Nizhny Novgorod Region, and other regions of the Volga Region and Central Russia.

History and Format

The festival was founded in 1996; by 2021 it had been held for the 25th time.[3] Traditionally, the festival opens in late October and runs for about a month and a half to two months, until early December.[1][2] For many years, the venue was the Museum of History and Culture of Moskovsky District (25 50-letiya Pobedy Street); in 2021 the festival moved to the Mikula Museum and Exhibition Center.[2][3]

The exhibition covers a wide range of techniques and genres: wood and forest sculpture, woodcarving, birch bark, marquetry, willow and straw weaving, floristry, wood painting, and pyrography.[1][2] The range of works on display is very broad: the largest known exhibit reached two meters in height, the smallest just two centimeters.[4] A typical exhibition includes about 200–350 works. The festival also holds a competition that determines the best works in the categories of woodcarving, floristry, and willow and straw weaving.[5][1][3]

Participants

The festival draws both experienced masters and young craftsmen under 18, as well as children's groups.[1] Over the years, craftsmen have come to the festival from Cheboksary, Sarov, Vladimir, Yoshkar-Ola, Vorsma, Pavlovo, Semyonov, Lyskovo, Dzerzhinsk, Suzdal, Bor, and other towns.[1][2][3] Alongside the group exhibition, the festival traditionally hosts solo exhibitions by individual masters: in 2013, the woodcarver Dmitry Zharkin[1]; in 2014, Igor Frolov, the creator of the "Single Chisel Technique" carving school (Igor Frolov is the author of five instructional manuals on the "Single Chisel Technique," containing more than 100 original flat-relief carving ornaments; his works are held in a number of Russian museums and in private collections abroad)[6][2]; in 2021, Yevgeny Geraskin, with wooden sculptures of bogatyrs, Tibetan monks, animals, and birds[3]; and in one year, solo exhibitions by the carvers Aleksandr Kazarinov and Aleksandr Torsky were presented simultaneously.[4]

Program

In addition to the exhibition, the festival includes workshops, excursions, and game programs for children.[2] Workshops held have included woodcarving, Gorodets painting, floristry in the "terra" technique (three-dimensional panels made from natural materials and a special mixture), weaving from straw and willow, making Christmas ornaments, roses from maple leaves, and weaving from talash (willow bark) and pine needles.[1][3][4] Separate game programs are provided for preschoolers and schoolchildren, including "The Tree of Wonders" and "Secrets of Craftsmanship."[2][4] Participation in the workshops is by advance registration.[1]

In 2016, about 40 artist-carvers, representing 14 creative associations from various regions of Russia, announced their wish to take part in the festival.[5]

Folk ensembles traditionally perform at the festival's opening ceremony; in 2016, a photo zone in the style of the lubok (traditional Russian popular print) and a "Wishing Tree" event were also organized for guests.[5]

Sources

  1. runews24.ru — The festival includes a competition, the results of which determine the best works in the categories of woodcarving, floristry, willow weaving, and straw weaving.
  2. frolmaster.ru — Igor Frolov, whose solo exhibition was held as part of the festival in 2014, is the author of five instructional manuals on the "Single Chisel Technique," containing more than
  1. NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" — Master class by Tatyana Gorelova "Working with Natural Material in the 'Terra' Technique" will take place as part of the XVII "Secrets of Wood" festival in Nizhny Novgorod on November 16 Nizhny Novgorod News…
  2. Vremya N — The "Secrets of Wood" festival of woodcraft masters will open in the Moskovsky District
  3. V gorode N — October 24: opening of the "Secrets of Wood" festival
  4. news.rambler.ru — The "Secrets of Wood" festival has started in Nizhny Novgorod