Sleeping Night Watchman [Kiev]

Product Description

Sleeping Guard (Спящая охрана на посту). USSR, Kiev Porcelain Factory. A figure of a guard who has fallen asleep (perhaps some coded political significance?). Attributed to Vladislav Ivanovich Shcherbina (1926-2017), a prominent Ukrainian porcelain sculptor and chief artist of the Kiev Factory (see below). This is apparently a somewhat scarce piece with a high book value. Excellent condition with lots of nice detail, no defects, no restoration, 4¾" tall. 1 only.

The Kiev Experimental Art Ceramics Factory (Kiev ECC) was founded in 1924 on the basis of a small workshop, which manufactured ceramic paints and decals. During World War II, the plant was destroyed but restored with the influx of capital investment. Mid-20th century found an expansion of the factory to manufacture decorative articles. Eventually the large art workshop became one of the best in the USSR at that time. Famous porcelain artists and sculptors that worked at the plant included O. L. Zhnikrup , V. I. Shcherbina , O. P. Rapay-Markish , G. M. Kaluga, A. D. Sorokin and many others. Also, Petrikov's painting on porcelain was introduced here for the first time. The fall of the USSR was not kind to these types of enterprises and eventually the factory ceased to exist. A collection of museum-quality pieces were to have been transferred to the State Museum of Decorative Ukrainian Art, but instead disappeared and presumed stolen.