| Today we shall talk about the composition in | | | | times ornament designed had a strongly marked |
| embroidery. You will get to know about | | | | symbolic meaning. |
| ornaments and its use to decorate household | | | | A straight horizontal line stood for the land |
| stuff in times of old. Ornamental patterns | | | | surface, horizontal wavy line stood for the water, |
| decorate many things. If a thing is beautiful, it is | | | | a vertical wavy line symbolized rain, triangles |
| pleasant to use it. You have many confections at | | | | meant mountains, crossed lined stood for fire and |
| home: fine china, in-wrought drapery, embroidered | | | | lightning, the Sun and the Moon - radiant celestial |
| cushions, ovenware… Try to decorate | | | | bodies - were indicated by a circle, a square, or a |
| them yourself. | | | | rhombus. |
| In former times only a few could buy fine things. | | | | A female character with hand up or down |
| In the villages away from big cities people made | | | | represented the image of Earth Mother, |
| and decorated the things they needed themselves | | | | connected with worshiping of the land and water. |
| - wooden spoons, plates, water scoops and other. | | | | Eastern Slavic goddess Bereginya, or Mokosh, |
| Some of them survived to our times. Many of | | | | was the patroness of water, household, hearth |
| such things are elaborately made. Now they are | | | | and home, and handiwork. |
| kept in museums. We do not know the names of | | | | Branchy trees and frog images stood for fertile |
| those who made them, but their art is called folk | | | | land; grass, flowers, bushes, and trees were called |
| art. | | | | "the hair of the Earth". Out-runner of the Sun, |
| The works of the folk craftsman delight us in | | | | warmth and light, symbol of happiness and joy |
| colour schemes, amazing pictures of plants, birds | | | | was a bird that promised the incoming of spring, |
| and animals. Patterns are wonderful: flowers, | | | | harvest and wealth. A deer and horse |
| outlandish birds, and thin and neat branches of | | | | represented "live-giving aster" - the Sun - and |
| trees. And what colours! | | | | were believed to bring good fortune, jollity, and |
| How could the folk craftsman create such a | | | | prosperity. |
| gorgeous design? | | | | The rhombus was the main sign and it had many |
| Who could give him a cue? | | | | meanings. A smooth or spurred rhombus stood |
| It was the nature that directed him; he had seen | | | | for the Sun and fire, as well as for fertility, revival. |
| it in the forest or in the garden. Look carefully at | | | | A chain of rhombuses meant the Tree of Life. A |
| the plants, how their leaves grow, what their | | | | rhombus with protruding sides represented the |
| shape is, what the colours are. | | | | top of timberwork; a square divided into four |
| Before making something, you should think the | | | | parts with a circle or a dot in each meant a |
| whole item over, decide upon the shape, arranging | | | | homestead and a sown field. |
| of the pattern, it character and colour. The artistic | | | | There were special ornaments for wedding |
| solution of the ornament is included into the | | | | garments and burial clothes, warrior clothing, |
| general concept of composition. | | | | farmers, and or household stuff, etc. Dishes, |
| The Latin word "composition" means arranging | | | | stoves and furniture were covered with |
| separate parts into a complete unit in a certain | | | | ornaments. Every region had their traditional |
| order. Together these parts are supposed to | | | | ornament patterns. It is easy to distinguish |
| create a definite shape. In the properly designed | | | | Russian pattern from Bashkir or Estonian one. |
| composition all the elements are interconnected, it | | | | Over time the figures changed, became more |
| is impossible to remove anything without the loss | | | | complicated and were combined with other |
| of integrity of the picture and the harmony of | | | | designs, creating image patterns. Now ornament |
| composition. | | | | has a purely decorative function. |
| Composition has the principal elements and | | | | Ornament is a pattern the elements of which |
| secondary, subordinate elements. The principal | | | | follow a definite rhythm. |
| elements are those that attract attention first and | | | | The part of the ornament that is completely |
| bear the main idea, the concept of the pattern. | | | | repeated at a specific interval is called rapport, |
| The major element of the design must be | | | | which means repetition. |
| connected and balanced by the secondary | | | | According to the arrangement and the character |
| elements. The main part is not necessarily located | | | | of composition, which is always closely related to |
| in the centre of the composition. It can be | | | | the shape o the decorated item, ornament can |
| emphasised by the means of contrast colour or | | | | be: |
| its size and shape. | | | | Ribbon - straight or arched strip that decorates |
| Composition can be three or two-dimensional. | | | | the middle of the item or frames it (frieze, |
| Embroidery is a two dimensional composition. | | | | border); Netlike, where all the surface is covered |
| Composition developing is a creative process of | | | | with the pattern; Centric, or rosette-like, where all |
| artistic work invention from conception to | | | | the elements are inserted into a square, circle, |
| perfection. Starting an embroidery, one should | | | | rhombus, or multi-angular (rosette), located in the |
| remember that it is an applied art, and any | | | | centre of an item. |
| embroidered item, whether it be a tablecloth, a | | | | The following ornament designs are distinguished: |
| blouse, or a panel, is household article as well as a | | | | Geometric, consisting of several elements; |
| piece of art. Thus, the size and fashion of the | | | | Meander - composed of broken lines, widely used |
| tablecloth, its colour, and the pattern will depend | | | | in Ancient Greece and named after the river |
| on the size and shape, material and colour of the | | | | Meander; Flower, or fito, composed of stylised |
| table it is made for. The tablecloth will become a | | | | flower, fruit, leaves and branch images; Animal, |
| part of interior, that is why it must be balance | | | | with stylised figures of animals and insects; |
| with the other things in the room. | | | | Lettering-like (ligature), resembling a lettering. |
| You should be aware of some the main notions | | | | Designing a pattern is always related to |
| and means of composition in order to learn how | | | | symmetry that is typical for folk embroidery |
| to arrange a composition correctly. They are | | | | patterns. You can invent a ornament with one or |
| rhythm, rapport order, symmetry and others. All | | | | several lines of symmetry. The easiest type of |
| these notions in their turn are connected with the | | | | symmetry (with one line) is a mirror reflection |
| concept of "ornament". | | | | when the line divides an element into two identical |
| In Latin "ornament" means decoration. In ancient | | | | parts. |