+2.3 °C
Chuvash State Art Museum opened an exhibition titled We by artist Maria Fomiryakova in Cheboksary.
The concept is inpired by "the ancestral world. Our universe. The human world, and the endless cosmos within us. Images of the past, gods, spirits, nature, the beauty of the world surrounding us" as stated by Maria, who researched social archetypes according to their roles. "The foremost purpose of my creaitivity is the study of archaic images of pagan religion of our ancient ancestors", says the artist.
The focal point of the art show is above all, the portraits of pagan deities and ancestors. Chuvash mythology is thought to incorporate more than 200 gods and faithful deities, populating the heaven, the earth, and the underwold, with the supreme god Turӑ, the creator of all. The visitors will see the artist's depictions of Turӑ, his wife Kepe, Angels and Kiremet, the spirits of Good and Evil, Red Ravine, deity Hertsurt dressed in white weaving the yarn of life. There are plenty of others including demons and other evil spirits.
Maria's technique is called Rip-art ans is made bright with tempera colors.
Besides mythological and neopagan canvases the artist presents more conventional oil paint portraits and landscapes. There is also a collection of illustrations to books such as The Sword of Tengri by Vladimir Stepanov.
Maria Fomiryakova is fathered by famous ethnofuturism artist Georgii Fomiryakov and was born in 1983 in the town of Alatyr. She graduated from the Arts and Graphics Department of Chuvash State Teacher's Training University in 2008. Maria has made a career as an interior designer while continuing her work as an artist.
On June 28 Chuvash people of Alših, Tatarstan performed a big sacrificial ritual. Local journalist Ulatimӗr Babikin (used to work for Pӑva TV studio) reports that folks slaughtered a young bull and prayed over it.
The sacrifice brought rains that watered fields and woods of Chuvashia dried up by scorching hot weather that even caused the officials in Patӑrjel rayon to announce emergency situation.
Let's remind here, that in the old times Chuvash would preform animal sacrifice in hot and scorching weather at nearby springs or rivers, lakes or ponds. They would usually read prayers over sacrificial porridge, milk soup and omelet. Folklorists also recorded many instances of horse, bull and lamb sacrifice.
We should also add here, that sacrifice is recorded within Christian Chuvash as well. In XIX century local clergy equated it with the one in Old Testament and called it Abrahamic Faith. Sacrificial lamb feast is offered on or after Petrav Kunӗ (Feast of Saints Peter and Paul). The other time the feast is held is in autumn and it resembles that of Islamic Kurban Bayram. Family, relatives, friends and neighbors gather under one roof or rather in the garden to celebrate the Christian holiday. Nowadays, the sacrificial and religious elements have faded, and it is just a festive meal rather than a semi-Islamic, or any ancient religious sacrifice.
