The museum purchased this metal powder box in 2017 to expand its collection of “Applied Arts and Household Items”. The powder box is equipped with a hinged lid, a mirror, a powder container, and an internal lock.
Such metal powder boxes were manufactured at the Soviet factories which also produced cigarette cases and caskets. Melchior, silver, and brass products were decorated with enamel paintings and relief images depicting various patterns, landscapes, and views of Soviet cities.
Face powder was actively used in theatrical makeup to conceal blemishes of the skin that could be exposed under bright stage lights. The powder box from the museum’s collection features the logo of the Moscow Art Theater — a seagull — inspired by Anton Chekhov’s play. “The Seagull” revealed Chekhov’s magnificent talent as a playwright and brought fame to the Moscow Art Theater of Konstantin Stanislavski and Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko.
The logo was designed by the architect Fyodor Schechtel, a classmate of the painter Isaac Levitan and Nikolay Chekhov, the writer’s older brother. The seagull has been soaring on the theater drapes for over a hundred years now. The bird symbolizes a flight of inspiration, a tragic destiny, and new horizons. Mikhail Chekhov, the writer’s younger brother, recalled the origins of the image of the seagull:
