"Military-Historical Stone-Cutting Miniatures by Dmitry Mertvetsov"

"Military-Historical Stone Carving Miniatures by Dmitry Mertvetzov"

On May 5, 2012, during a significant year in Russian history, an exhibition titled "RUSSIA. TIME OF GLORY AND DELIGHT" was opened at the Novosibirsk State Art Museum. The art museum showcased a unique collection of military-historical stone-carved miniatures created by Novosibirsk master Dmitry Mertvetsev. The works presented at the exhibition are united by a single theme—the reconstruction of Russian military costumes, uniforms, and armaments of participants in renowned battles from the early 17th to the mid-20th centuries. The retrospective provides a broad historical panorama, ranging from the Battle of Poltava to the campaigns led by A.V. Suvorov, M.I. Kutuzov, and other commanders. Fusiliers, dragoons, musketeers, grenadiers, rotmistras, and lieutenants clad in breastplates, helmets, grenadier caps, gaiters, overcoats, and waistcoats, armed with sabers, swords, muskets, fusils, bayonets, spears, and pikes, are crafted on a scale of 1:10 from jasper, lapis lazuli, jade, and other stones. The gold and silver of galloons, epaulettes, cockades, and heraldic emblems shine on the stone of the waistcoats, helmets, and grenadier caps. The figurines of warriors from long-ago battles are plastic, expressive, and splendidly detailed. The exhibition featured 14 works, 11 of which were by the author, while three were generously provided by private collector Grigory Gaponov. The opening of the exhibition was attended by the governor of the Novosibirsk region, Vasily Yurchenko. The exhibition was inaugurated by the Minister of Culture of the Novosibirsk region, Natalia Yaroslavtseva, and the Director of the Novosibirsk State Art Museum, Sergey Dubrovsky. In their speeches, they highly praised the collection presented for its significance to the city and the country as a whole, and expressed the common sentiment among museum professionals and officials that this collection should become the property of the museum. The exhibition was very successful, gathering a large audience.The number of enthusiastic reviews in the circles of cultural and political figures, as well as among the general public, was significant. In light of this public resonance and the high evaluation from museum specialists, the Novosibirsk region made the decision to purchase eleven pieces from this collection. The remaining three figures were not for sale by the private collector. The Novosibirsk State Art Museum received ten pieces for its permanent exhibition. It was decided to present one piece as a personal gift to the President of the Russian Federation, V.V. Putin, from the Novosibirsk region in honor of the celebrations of the events of 1812. In 2012, the stone-carved miniature "Küstrin, August 17, 1813" was gifted to V.V. Putin by the Governor of the Novosibirsk region, V.A. Yurchenko. Moscow. The Kremlin. 2012. V. Putin and V. Yurchenko. A total of 20 figures were made in this series. According to Dmitry, he has completed this series and does not intend to return to it. The crafting of the figures in this series took the master 11 years. Currently, five unique works are for sale, three of which were featured in the aforementioned exhibition. According to experts, these are among the best works in the series in terms of quality and significance. For example, the figure "Schöngraben, November 4, 1805. Unter-officer of the Kiev Grenadier Regiment" is the first work in this series created by the master. It has won numerous awards at regional and all-Russian exhibitions. The works "Leipzig, October 4, 1813" and "Preussisch-Eylau, February 8, 1807" are the last pieces where the master applied all his accumulated experience and skill over the years. These five figures represent a complete collection that provides a full understanding of the master's creativity. It should also be noted that the figures not included in the catalog are held in private collections that are not publicly accessible and belong to representatives of the business and political elite of Russia. One of these figures was gifted to V.V. Putin on October 8, 2014, on the occasion of his birthday by the Governor of the Novosibirsk region, Vladimir Gorodetsky. Here is this figure:The text translates to: "Collection of V.V. Putin"