Khokhloma painting

In 1916, on the initiative and at the expense of Nizhny Novgorod Mayor D.V. Sirotkin, a School of artistic wood processing headed by artist G.P. Matveev was opened in the city of Semenov. After the Great October Socialist Revolution, the school was not only preserved, but also found significant support from the new Soviet government. Graduates of the school introduced new elements into the painting, the school united disparate artisans, revived the craft and aimed to produce products for sale in foreign markets.

The development of the Semyonov school of wood processing was very active. In 1924, the school was transformed into the association "Artisan artist"; in 1931 it was transformed into the artel "Export". In 1934, the museum of handicrafts was founded in Semenov. During the Great Patriotic War, many masters of the artel went to the front and died, and the company worked for the needs of the front, made skis, ammunition boxes and spoons for soldiers. More than 10 thousand spoons were made daily for the front. The heroic labor feat in the rear was borne by fragile female shoulders. It was women who replaced the male artists who did not return from the front, and since then they have begun to play a major role in the factory team.

In 1950, the masters of the Khokhloma painting (as the artel became known) formed a new handwriting, there was a tendency to complicate the painting, elegance. In 1960, the artel was reborn into a large factory "Khokhloma painting", technical re-equipment took place, new workshops were put into operation. In 1964, a creative laboratory was created on the basis of the enterprise, which was headed by the artist E. N. Dospalova. New forms of products and types of writing adapted to the everyday life of citizens are being developed. Numerous world exhibitions in Montreal (1967), Osaka (1970), Paris, at VDNH brought awards and diplomas to the factory's piggy bank and made it world-famous. In 1992, the company opened a division for the production of matryoshka dolls, in 1993 - a miniature painting workshop, in 2004 – a painting section. In 2014, the city of Semenov was awarded the status of the capital of the Golden Khokhloma. The International festival movement "Zolotaya Khokhloma" begins in the same year. In 2015, a new line of production of fashion accessories with elements of Khokhloma painting is launched.