"First Impressions Count...": Costumes of the Peoples of Russia in the 18th and 19th Century Art Drawing

An exhibition "Clothes of our Ancestors. The 18th and 19th Century Art Drawing" will open in the library, on June 14.

The exhibition includes a collection of engravings of the 18th and lithographs of the 19th century by Russian and foreign artists from the collections of the Russian State Art Library. The drawings on display depict traditional costumes of the peoples inhabiting Russia in the past centuries (the regions of the North Caucasus and the Volga, the Far North, Siberia, Central Asia, the Baltic States, etc).

The engravings of Johann Gottlieb Georgi (1729–1802), lithographs of Yemelyan Korneev (1782–1839) and chromolithography from the album "Peoples of Russia" of Gustave Theodor Pauli (1817–1867) will be presented at the exposition. On the lithographs, some characters are static, others are dynamic. All the figures are depicted against the backdrop of a landscape, a facade or the interior of a dwelling, depending on what the artist considered to be the most typical for the area.

The pictures tend towards painterliness, bright and rich colors. Minor details, ornaments of fabrics and decorations are worked with jeweler precision, and expressive faces correspond to ethnic types. Some of the images are made from nature, while others are based on the collections belonging to the Imperial Russian Geographical Society.

On the opening day of the exposition, the National Library of Belarus will present an exhibition of encyclopedic publications, books and articles about the history of Russian and Belarusian costumes.

The vernissage will start in the gallery "Rakurs" (2nd floor), at 16.00.

We invite you to visit the exhibition "Clothes of our Ancestors. The 18th and 19th Century Art Drawing", which will run until September 1, 2018.

The closing date of the exhibition can be changed.

The opening hours of the exhibition corresponds to the library’s opening hours.
Entrance to the exhibition is available by the library ticket or ticket of the library's social and cultural center.

Contact us: 293 28 81, 266 37 37, 293 28 23.
E-mail: pr@nlb.by