//Exhibition//Belarus – aNew//
Author: Maksim Osipau
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Painted rugs were a cheap alternative to tapestries that Belarusian peasants saw in the palaces of the Polish nobility. As they could not afford such luxuries, folk artists painted them on plain, rolled, blackprimed canvas. They were available cheaply or in exchange for half a bag of potatoes. They featured fanciful images of the biblical paradise, as well as idyllic, romantic and battle scenes. Folk artists were not very skilful in copying illustrations from the Bible and were unscrupulous in creating their own interpretations of works by famous painters seen in reproductions, postcards, and the press. The author described the project as follows: “I turned to this old genre because its language was understandable to most people and this suited me well. Like my predecessors, I use a stretcher and buy paints in DIY stores. However, society and artists have changed over the past century, and I do not see the need to continue the tradition of painting the kingdom of heaven”.
The project was carried out as part of the Gaude Polonia scholarship.