The wooden armchair " Slow and steady wins the race " presented in the exhibition is a classic example of the Russian style in furniture art of the 1870s. Items with a peasant theme were very popular at the end of the 19th century in the wake of the populist movement and Russophile sentiments in society.
The design of the chair is created of easily recognizable peasant household items carved from wood. The name of the chair — " Slow and steady wins the race " — a proverb carved on the back, imitating an arc for a horse harness. The armrests of the chair are made in the form of axes. Under the arch are mittens on an embroidered towel. The chair was sometimes called ‘arc, ax and mittens’.
Vasily Shutov was a St. Petersburg furniture maker and woodcarving master. He was born into a wealthy family, but soon his father went bankrupt, and Vasily was sent to study at the St. Petersburg carpentry workshop. He studied successfully, then continued to improve his skills and at the age of twenty-seven, Shutov became the owner of his own carpentry workshop and a teacher at the St. Petersburg Art and Industry Academy named after Baron Stieglitz. The chair ‘Slow and steady wins the race’ was first presented to the public at the All-Russian Manufacturing Exhibition of 1870 in St. Petersburg and was awarded a bronze medal.
After the All-Russian Manufacturing Exhibition, Vasily Shutov was given the privilege of this chair from the Department of Trade and Manufacturing for 10 years. During this time, more than fifty repetitions were created. After ten years, other furniture makers began to make their own variations of the chair. It was slightly modified, adding a bridle, bast shoes, replacing the proverb on the arc. A similar chair could be found in the interiors of representatives of very different circles and estates: both in the office of Emperor Alexander III, who was famous for his Russophile views, and in the apartments of the leading Russian intelligentsia, for example, at Anton Chekhov’s house. The chair was presented to him by a Yalta acquaintance Sophia Bonnier, a member of the Yalta Patronage for the needs of the visiting patients.
The design of the chair is created of easily recognizable peasant household items carved from wood. The name of the chair — " Slow and steady wins the race " — a proverb carved on the back, imitating an arc for a horse harness. The armrests of the chair are made in the form of axes. Under the arch are mittens on an embroidered towel. The chair was sometimes called ‘arc, ax and mittens’.
Vasily Shutov was a St. Petersburg furniture maker and woodcarving master. He was born into a wealthy family, but soon his father went bankrupt, and Vasily was sent to study at the St. Petersburg carpentry workshop. He studied successfully, then continued to improve his skills and at the age of twenty-seven, Shutov became the owner of his own carpentry workshop and a teacher at the St. Petersburg Art and Industry Academy named after Baron Stieglitz. The chair ‘Slow and steady wins the race’ was first presented to the public at the All-Russian Manufacturing Exhibition of 1870 in St. Petersburg and was awarded a bronze medal.
After the All-Russian Manufacturing Exhibition, Vasily Shutov was given the privilege of this chair from the Department of Trade and Manufacturing for 10 years. During this time, more than fifty repetitions were created. After ten years, other furniture makers began to make their own variations of the chair. It was slightly modified, adding a bridle, bast shoes, replacing the proverb on the arc. A similar chair could be found in the interiors of representatives of very different circles and estates: both in the office of Emperor Alexander III, who was famous for his Russophile views, and in the apartments of the leading Russian intelligentsia, for example, at Anton Chekhov’s house. The chair was presented to him by a Yalta acquaintance Sophia Bonnier, a member of the Yalta Patronage for the needs of the visiting patients.
