Like our capital, in 1147, for the first time in the annals, Vologda was mentioned. The lace museum, which will be discussed, is much younger. It was opened in 2010, November 3.
Vologda Museum
In the center of the city, near the Kremlin, there is a museum amazingly beautiful and rich in exposure. An ancient stone building for displaying world-famous lace passed Vologda. The Lace Museum (address: Kremlyovskaya sq., 12) can be visited on any day except Monday and Tuesday. The ticket price for adults is 200 rubles. On the basis of the institution, a creative workshop, a shop-salon, a cafe and a classroom are open.
What time does the Lace Museum in Vologda operate? Opening hours are convenient for visitors. It is open from ten in the morning until five in the evening. His guides in Russian, English and French with interest and deep knowledge tell about the fine art of weaving lace.
The appearance of the museum
The Lace Museum (Vologda), which has a history of just over six years, was opened by decision of the Vologda Oblast Governor V.E. Pozgalev, adopted in 2008. It is located in a two-story stone building - a monument of architecture of the XIX century. Its area is one thousand five hundred square meters. About three hundred million rubles were allocated from the regional and federal budgets for its restoration and creation of the exposition.
Member of the Union of Artists of Russia, Vologda designer S.M. Ievlev carried out his artistic design. Thanks to all efforts, Vologda acquired the Museum of Lace in two years.
The opening ceremony was attended by representatives of Austria, Germany, Belgium, Poland and France, as well as the leadership of the MK of the Russian Federation, Governor V. Pozgalev, the head of the city of Vologda, and deputies.
What is represented in the museum?
On the ground floor there are two halls in which removable and traveling exhibitions take place. Here visitors can see the old European lace, kindly provided by Mrs. Mick Furisko, as well as an exhibition from the collection of Madame Ruth Scheidegger-Mayer. Of interest is the thematic exhibition - weaving lace in the visual arts
On the ground floor there is also a small art salon-shop where you can purchase original works made in a single copy. A separate room is allocated for a creative workshop and classroom. It will show how to properly handle lace tools, conduct classes on weaving lace. After visiting the main museum exposition of the second floor, whose area is six hundred square meters, you can relax in the cafe on the ground floor, have a cup of coffee in front of the upcoming road home. Vologda hosts thousands of tourists every year. The Lace Museum is popular with visitors from the most remote regions of the country.
Enfilades of the second floor
Eight halls are occupied by the main exposition, which shows all seven hundred exhibits in chronological order. The very first room - “European Lace Centers” - demonstrates how the art of lace weaving was born in Western Europe: Spain and France, Germany and Belgium, Slovakia and Poland.
The journey through the halls of the museum continues with the exhibited cult objects of the XVII - XIX centuries. Already in the XIII century, our ancestors knew lace, as evidenced by the Ipatiev Chronicle. The oldest and most expensive exhibits have been preserved for us by Vologda. The Lace Museum has a collection that dates from the 17th century. These unique products are woven from the finest gold or silver threads, which were called gimp. The process was so lengthy and painstaking that in Russian the word "wander" was assigned to a very slow business. These laces were weighed and thus determined their price. The complexity of the work did not affect her. Guides will tell you that the word “lace” comes from the verb “surround”. In those days, long measuring tapes were woven, which were then sewn to dresses, aprons, and linen.
By special order, historical costumes were sewn, which are now decorated with lace products. All this beauty is demonstrated by the "Lace in the Peasant Costume" halls, which feature elegant peasant and city clothes.
Experienced guides will tell you about the technique of the craftswomen’s work, about how the first Russian inexpensive lace from long-fiber flax, shiny and durable, appeared on the tour. They will also explain how this laborious fishery developed. He remembers and appreciates his first masters, knows them by the names of Vologda. The Lace Museum has dedicated display cases to their products. The manufacture of narrow and wide tapes (measured lace) was improved by the craftswoman Anfiya Bryantseva. She and her daughter Sophia began to weave wraps and collars in a special “Vologda manner”, teaching the inhabitants of the city and surrounding villages this cunning science. Even local nuns are involved in this business.
Pre-war fishing
After the revolution, it became very difficult for lace-makers to “get” threads for weaving and kerosene for lighting. All of them, separated, were homeworkers. First, a school for lace makers was created, as many secrets were lost. Two years later, in 1930, the Vologda Lace Union appeared - fifty lace artels. Since 1935, they began to work under the guidance of artists who created original ornaments for panels, tablecloths, napkins, collars. For large products, such as tracks, patterns associated with the industrialization of the country were woven.
Five-pointed stars, planes, portraits of leaders began to appear on them. A lot, a lot of lace was being woven at this time. For a year - up to seven hundred kilometers! And another hundred thousand piece goods. If counted by weight, it turns out that it took almost twenty-five tons of threads to this amount. It also required a huge number of pins, cardboard for chips and kerosene for lighting. These works of pre-war and pre-revolutionary art were carefully preserved in the storerooms by the ethnographic department of the local historical museum and transferred to the Lace Museum. Vologda, while preserving antique products, gives its artists an impetus to create new unique patterns.
Association of craftswomen
In 1930, all lace-makers, and there were more than forty thousand of them, were united in the Vologda Lace Union. And in 1960, an enterprise was created, called the “Snowflake”. All the old traditions by which lace was made were preserved. The Museum of Lace (Vologda) shows very curious and amazingly beautiful exhibits. The photo below shows the inexhaustible imagination of the craftswomen.
The company supplies many unique and luxurious products to the museum. They meet and escort visitors.
