The Ethnology Notebooks. 2024. № 6 (180), 1427—1440
UDK 75.046.3.017.4(477.83-21Судова Вишня)
DOI https://doi.org/10.15407/
FEATURES OF COLOR IN THE ICONS OF VYSHNIA PAINTERS
HELYTOVYCH Maria
- ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5839-9585
- Candidate of Arts, Associate Professor,
- Lead Researcher,
- Andrey Sheptytskyi National Museum in Lviv,
- 20, Svobody avenue, 79000, Lviv, Ukraine,
- Contacts: e-mail: helytovychm@yahoo.com
Abstract. The color of Ukrainian icons is one of the primary factors contributing to their artistic expressiveness; however, this aspect has not been sufficiently emphasized in research. The color palette of Ukrainian iconographic monuments is characterized by significant diversity and has taken on different manifestations and meanings at various stages of its history. In the 17th century, color takes on a new resonance during a time when new stylistic features — Mannerism and Baroque — emerge in sacred art.
The characteristics of this style in Western Ukrainian sacred painting can be clearly traced through the examples of monuments created by masters from a specific artistic center that operated in the town of Sudova Vyshnia, near Lviv. These painters made a substantial contribution to the art of their time, enriching its iconography and artistic framework. The color schemes of their icons are marked by richness and variety. Different masters from this center exhibit unique characteristics in their color palettes, serving as arguments for identifying monuments in a temporal context and as means for attributing works to anonymous or signed painters.
The complex of monuments analyzed in this article allows us to trace the characteristic features of the color schemes from the Vyshnia center, as well as the specificity of their artistic language, in which color played an important role in expressing emotional perception of the work. Special attention is given to the works of one of the leading masters from this center — painter Yatsko, who frequently signed his icons. Based on the artistic and compositional features of his painting, several additional works have been attributed to Yatsko. Attention is also drawn to his icons featuring conventional portraits — epitaphs and images of donors — which were a new phenomenon in Ukrainian iconography at that time.
From the examples provided, we conclude that the icons created by Vyshnia masters demonstrate significant diversity in terms of color characteristics: ranging from rich, vibrant palettes to more restrained and limited ones. This diversity, despite common overall characteristics, is attributed to the long temporal activity of this center, where at least two generations of painters with varying levels of professional training and talent operated. The older generation, educated on ancient models, adhered to the traditions of the previous century, while the younger generation forged paths towards a new artistic and compositional system oriented towards Western European examples.
Keywords: research, master, icon, color, stylistics, tradition, 17th century.
Received 5.11.2024
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