Origin and development of folk applied art of Kosiv region (end of 18th – second half of 19th centuries)

Abstract

In Hutsul region, due to many historical circumstances and peculiarities of the natural and geographical environment, a specific way of managing the locals was formed; home crafts and handicrafts were developed.
The process of formation and development of Hutsul crafts is inextricably linked with the life of the mountaineers, who almost completely provided themselves with consumer goods. The availability of natural raw materials and the remoteness from industrial centres encouraged locals to engage in pottery, weaving, producing furniture, utensils, brass, clothing, lizhnyky (blankets of wool) and more.
The most popular trades of Kosiv region at the end of the 18th – second half of the 19th centuries were pottery and artistic weaving, including lizhnyk making. Having a fertile artistic and raw material base, the manufacture of lizhnyks has always played a huge role in the life of Hutsul house. The lizhnyk had to be among the dowry of the girl; it was given at baptisms and it accompanied the last journey.
The development of Kosiv, Pistyn and Kut pottery was facilitated by the presence of rich deposits of plastic pottery clays, as well as the need to make utensils for everyday use. The products of each of these centres of pottery differed in their characteristics, which depended on the natural properties of materials, the level of ceramic production and local traditions.
The artistic traditions and the unique spiritual culture, over the centuries, are a permanent basis for the development of folk arts and crafts. From generation to generation passed artistic and stylistic techniques of decoration; the secrets of technical and technological skills, and improved techniques for processing natural materials. Traditions of folk arts and crafts, which have stood out in a bright artistic phenomenon, have become one of the important aspects of socio-economic and artistic life of modern Hutsul region.
The rapid development of factory industry in the second half of the 19th century caused a reduction in the production of most household items. At the same time, the growth of industrial production of goods, trends in their domestic use contributed to the rise of the role of artistic origin in traditional types of applied crafts.

Improving the quality of products, adjusting the development of industrial production and folk crafts required the introduction of art and industrial education. In this context, the establishment in 1882 of the Weaving School in Kosiv was a significant event in the beginning of professional education in Hutsul region.