One of the unique phenomena that has been preserved in Uzbekistan since ancient times is the national toy - funny ceramic figurines made in the best traditions of Uzbek masters, carrying a large charge of good energy. In each locality it contains to create their own unique and original features.
Clay is a natural material from which people have built their houses, made dishes and, of course, children's toys and whistles since ancient times. Nowadays, toys for children are made from more modern materials, and clay has become the basis for the artistic creations of modern masters of Uzbekistan and all of Central Asia as a whole.
The production of clay figurines was typical of the Bukhara-Samarkand school of ceramics. The toy has very ancient historical and social roots.
A unique center for their production was the village of Kasbi, where in the 1970s and 80s the craftswoman Ambar-opa Sattarova worked, creating unique toys in the form of birds and animals on wheels. The traditions of this type of toys date back to ancient times, as evidenced by archaeological finds.
Another center is Denau, where the brothers-usto Badali Rasul Zukhurov, in addition to producing the typical brown-yellow ceramics with greenish streaks for this school, made whistle toys in the form of figurines of birds and animals, which were covered with light blue glaze.
By the mid-1980s and early 1990s, a change in the production of toys in the aforementioned centers was noted, mainly due to a change of generations. In connection with the death of Fathulla Sagdullaev, the tradition of making molded figurative decorations on ceramic vessels was interrupted. The tradition of making unique, inimitable Sagdullaev whistle toys was also interrupted, unique examples of which have been preserved only in museum collections and private collections.
Fantastic animals, birds, horses, rams, which made up the main stock of images of clay toys, had various features. Some have a body ending in a whistle, others have it on the side, which makes it possible to pay attention to the shape of the bird's tail. In toys of this design, the characteristic elements are the heads. In the modeling of bird heads, this power is manifested by observation, knowledge of the characteristic features of the depicted birds by the masters.
Of particular interest are the toys of Rasul Zurukhov from Denau. With a small range of themes, they have their own uniqueness. The peculiarity of Zukhurov's toys is that not only the four-legged structure with a whistle acts as a stable element, repeated in all the toys, but also the image of an animal, which is closest in appearance to a camel. The mobile elements of the form, adding variety to the toys and giving the master the opportunity to improvise, are the details located on the heads of the animals.
Samarkand masters of the 20th century also turn to toys in their work, but their plot compositions are most likely miniature sculpture. The appearance of this kind of small plastic art in the art of Samarkand masters is associated with the name of usto Umarkul Dzhurakulov. Today, his school is represented by the works of the Mukhtarov family. People busy with everyday affairs, warrior heroes, dragons - all the works of the Mukhtarov masters are marked by the purity of form and integrity of compositions.
The most famous center is the village of Uba near the city of Vabkent, where such skilled craftsmen as Fathullo Sagdullaev and Khamro-bibi Rakhimova continued to work by the 1970s. Continuing centuries-old traditions, they also had an individual style, their toys were easily recognizable. Uba toys are not glazed, they are decorated with stucco and painting. The toys depict horses, dogs, riders, and fantastic animals.
In the distant Vabkent district of the Bukhara region, the famous hereditary craftswoman Kubaro Boboeva creates wonders from clay.
The making of dolls is also one of the practically lost and revived types of crafts. In the recent past, theatrical performances of wandering puppeteers - maskharaboz were one of the brightest and most beloved entertainments of rural and urban residents. Even at the beginning of the 20th century, wandering puppeteers - maskharaboz performed in the colorful bazaars and squares of the country, bringing great pleasure to children and adults with their performances. And since 1939, the Republican Puppet Theater has been operating in Uzbekistan, its repertoire includes productions of foreign and national Uzbek drama.
The national doll is a bridge to the knowledge and understanding of the history, traditions and uniqueness of Uzbek culture. Everyone who looks at the doll in the hands of the puppeteer sees how it literally comes to life in the hands of the master. Masters who work with dolls try to convey their understanding of the world around them.
Our distant ancestors made dolls from wood, ceramics, straw and reeds. Different types of dolls have survived to this day: glove dolls, marionette dolls. They are made of painted papier-mâché, wood, clay. Clothes for dolls are sewn from fabrics made in the national style. Craftsmen have their own traditional technology for cutting clothes and embroidery. Dolls represent various folk types and heroes of literary works.
Today, dolls dressed in national costumes have become a traditional Uzbek souvenir, which can be used not only as a toy, but also as an interesting, bright interior detail.
Bukhara doll makers study the history of Bukhara costume, use traditional technology of cutting clothes, embroidery, Bukhara karakul. The artist and scrupulously adhere to the symbolism of various details of the costume, characteristic of its owner. Coming to life in the hands of the masters, the dolls form a colorful round dance of national images.
Dolls are not just toys, but a means of education, propaganda of our national culture. Dolls created and dressed in the national spirit, form and develop in children a love for their native land. Our ancestors, who made dolls toys from wood, clay, reed and straw, understood this well.
Source: tourprom.ru