Show all images on one page	#001809 Title: Svyatogor--the legend Warrior Artist: Strunin Konstantin Size: 24x11x4.5 Size (inches): 9.5x4.5x1.5 Price : $795 SOLD!

Konstantin Strunin of Mstera is the talented master responsible for the delightful assortment of dazzling color and well defined decoration before you.
The composition shows Svyatogor sleeping not far from his native Holy Mountains. He is the strongest Russian bogatyr who always suffered from his strength. He is a giant, and the peasants that also inhabit the Holy Mountains, and plough its lands (they are depicted behind the Svyatogor's back) seem to be Lilliputians as compared with him. He suffers because his strength increases everyday, and there is no man in the world who could compete with him in strength. In the end Svyatogor dies, as he can't compete with the Earth, and the Earth can't bear this huge and heavy bogatyr. To the left from this central scene the artist depicts the feast arranged in the palace of Prince Vladimir. To the right from it, the servant of Prince Vladimir refuses the woodcutters to cut the old oak because it is protected by Svyatogor.
This scene is dominated by red, green, brown, gray and orange colors, with little variance in tone. Gold paint is used to paint the foliage of the old oak, and also to decorate the architecture, and Svyatogor's costume and armor.
Strunin has then demonstrated his master hand and painted a unique and expert floral patterns around the composition. These patterns are painted with gold paints and accented with blue and red tempera paints. The sides of the box are decorated with more complex patterns painted in ochre tempera paints and detailed with gold.
The box is constructed out of paper-mache. Black lacquer covers the exterior and red lacquer covers the interior of the box. The box has a hinge above the composition and rests on a flat bottom. The artist wrote Mstera, and his name at the bottom of the painting.