Painted Towels in Museum and Archival Collections of Ukraine: Regional Artistic Features

Abstract

The aim of the article is to identify and arrange the available samples of painted towels, as well as their images in museum and archival collections of Ukraine, to analyze regional artistic features, the most common compositions, motifs, and stylistic interpretations.Research methods combine source studies, which consist in the study of original works, axiological method – for revealing value features of these samples, and art critical analysis – for describing artistic features of painted towels.Scientific novelty. The article arranges, considers and introduces into science the original samples of painted towels, as well as their images from museum and archival sources.Conclusions. Painted towels were used in the interior of rural homes mainly in the 1920s to 1970s. Out of a large number of different types of towels, hand-painted ones usually imitated kilkovi rushnyky (magnificently embroidered towels for icons and paintings) and bozhnyks (towels for decorating icons), both of which were of a great importance in Ukrainian ethnic culture. These samples are characterized by features of woven, embroidered or printed prototypes, the imitation of regional compositional schemes, motifs, decorative expressiveness. At the same time, painted towels are original works of art, organically combined with the integral ornamental space of a peasant house.