The Ethnology Notebooks. 2026. № 4 (190), 1188—1199
UDK 748:749.1:72.04:7.025.3(477)
- Received: 27.05.2026
- Accepted: 01.06.2026
- Published: ??.??.2026
DECORATIVE BLOWN GLASS LIGHTING FIXTURES BY MARIAN TARNAVSKYI IN THE ARCHITECTURAL ENVIRONMENT: ARTISTIC FEATURES AND PRESERVATION ISSUES
KOVALIUK Khrystyna
- ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4116-9537
- Postgraduate Student, Lecturer,
- Lviv National Academy of Arts,
- Department of Artistic Glass,
- 38, Kubiiovycha Str., 79011, Lviv, Ukraine,
- Contacts: e-mail: kovaliuk.art.design@gmail.com
Abstract. Introduction. The creative work of Marian Tarnavskyi, particularly his decorative lighting fixtures, constitutes an important component in the history of glassmaking of the 20th—21st centuries, which has not yet received sufficient attention in art historical discourse.
Problem Statement. The study of design practices of 20th-century artists is an essential element in shaping a contemporary understanding of Ukrainian applied art. At the same time, issues related to the preservation of authorial lighting fixtures within the context of historical architecture require comprehensive analysis and the activation of professional scholarly discussion. The object of the study is decorative lighting fixtures made of blown (huta) glass created by M. Tarnavskyi. The purpose of the research is to systematize Marian Tarnavskyi’s decorative blown glass lighting fixtures, to identify their artistic and structural characteristics in interaction with the architectural environment, and to outline the main preservation challenges and possible ways to address them.
Methods. The research employs an archival and bibliographic method. Oral history methods were applied, including interviews and surveys of eyewitnesses, participants, and individuals involved in the creation of the studied objects. Field research played a significant role, involving site visits. The collected material was processed using methods of systematization and classification. Formal and compositional analysis was used to identify artistic features, alongside a comparative method.
Results. Fourteen architectural objects decorated with blown glass lighting fixtures were examined and analyzed, including street lamps, chandeliers, pendant lights, wall sconces, and an installation created by Marian Tarnavskyi in co-authorship between 1973 and 1985. The specifics of the design and implementation of these lighting fixtures within the architectural environment were outlined. Archival data and photographic materials from the author’s archives, the Lviv Regional Organization of the National Union of Artists of Ukraine, and the Department of Artistic Glass of the Lviv National Academy of Arts were introduced into scholarly circulation for the first time. The importance of preserving these authorial lighting fixtures in the context of the potential disappearance of the blown glass craft is emphasized.
Keywords: Marian Tarnavsky’s art work, blown glass, decorative lamps, complex interior design.
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