The tray “The Kushva River” from the museum collection was painted by Tatyana Dmitriyevna Binas, a master of lacquer painting on metal. She created the composition following one of the traditional styles of Nizhny Tagil tray art with the designs featuring various scenes. In the early 2000s, the artist created a series of trays depicting her favorite places in the Ural region. Many of these trays were included in the collection of the museum-reserve.
The tradition of painting trays arose in the mid-18th century. During that time, in addition to household trays decorated with traditional floral patterns, new designs became popular. They featured landscapes and genre scenes. Wealthy people would hang such trays on the walls of their houses, just like paintings. In the first half of the 19th century, painted trays became extremely popular at fairs throughout the Russian Empire.
Tatyana Binas was born in Nizhny Tagil in 1954. In 1973, she became an apprentice artist at the tray painting workshop of the Emalposuda (Enamelware) factory. A year later, she was awarded the title of “Best in the Occupation”. Wishing to hone her skills and achieve a higher professional level, Tatyana Binas enrolled at the Nizhny Tagil State Pedagogical Institute in 1975. She graduated in 1980.
During her studies at the institute, Tatyana Binas continued to cooperate with the factory and attended workshops on the revival of quick single-layer tray painting in the Urals organized by employees of the Moscow Research Institute of Art Industry.
In this composition, Tatyana Binas captured a picturesque landscape from the Ural countryside: the small Kushva river flows among the overgrown banks on a sunny summer day. The artist managed to convey a sense of calm and tranquility on a hot summer noon. This area in the vicinity of Nizhny Tagil was familiar to the artist.
The landscape is distinguished by thorough elaboration of detail. In this tray, the artist combined several decoration techniques: multi-layer painting, quick single-layer patting, and brushwork ornamentation, giving the tray a unique Ural flair. Having worked in the art industry for half a century, Tatyana Binas has created numerous trays using these techniques.
