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The quotes in this article are all sourced from an interview with Sophie, a Golden Cockerel employee. She is a studio art major at App State and an avid doll collector.
[ WHAT IS A RUSSIAN DOLL? ] Russian dolls, also called Matryoshka dolls, nesting dolls, or stacking dolls, are a carved art form where smaller carved pieces "nest" inside a larger piece, resulting in a new doll appearing everytime you open the original one.
[ WHAT IS A RUSSIAN DOLL? ] Russian dolls, also called Matryoshka dolls, nesting dolls, or stacking dolls, are a carved art form where smaller carved pieces "nest" inside a larger piece, resulting in a new doll appearing everytime you open the original one.
This diorama showcases the process of crafting Russian dolls before electricity, which utilized a hand-operated lathe and small woodworking tools.
[ A HISTORY ]
“Nesting dolls are traditionally peasant art families would make and sell at market. The father would do the carving, and the mother and children would paint the doll and sell them. The idea of a nesting doll was originally a Japanese art form, but they really took off in Russia and became more closely associated with Russian culture. "
Russian dolls seem to have a common muse. “[Traditional nesting dolls] almost always depict women, because they represent a life inside of a life.”
[ THE GOLDEN COCKEREL ]
“Golden Cockerel is owned by Walton Conway. In the 80’s he went to Russia to teach English and fell in love with the art. He met his best friend there, and they decided to start a buisness together. His Russian friend still manages everything on that end, our workshop is based in St. Petersburg and all our dolls are painted and carved by the team of artists working there. The dolls are then shipped here to our store in Boone. Almost everything in here comes straight from Russia. Most of our business is online, we sell on Amazon, wholesale, and on our website. One of our biggest customers is the state of Alaska, actually. We have a shelf of Alaska themed dolls, just because it was a territory originally settled by Russian people.There are a lot of links in Alaska to Russian culture."
“As a company, we support a free and democratic Ukraine and do not support the war. We want to share Russian art rather than a Russian agenda. The war has made things tricky. From a cultural standpoint I think people are definitely more hesitant to support any business that has Russia in the name, and also from a financial standpoint it has been more expensive, not that tariffs have 100% to do with the war but the timeline has been difficult with shipping."
Nolinsk dolls (image 2) have an unique straw inlay, and are sourced from artists in that specific region. There also is a significant collection of vintage dolls from all over Russia, including a set of from the USSR dolls depicting USSR-era leaders.
“Whenever you need a gift, you can find something here. There is something for everybody.” One can find handmade toys, Russian porcelain, paint your own nesting dolls, brooches, Black Sea earrings and more.
Interested in specialty dolls? The Golden Cockerel has made custom dolls for The Smashing Pumpkins (to sell with their merch on tour), Nike, General Electric, Pepsi, Google, and The Beatles!
[ PHOTO GALLERY ]
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