Winter outdoor fun

This very detailed box has been painted by a talented Palekh artist Natalie Lukina. It shows happy Russian peasants enjoying a frosty, winter day. They sleigh down a snowy hill, skate on the pond, make a snowman, ski, play hockey, ride a troika and admire whirling snowflakes that so beautifully glisten in the sun...On the right part of the composition we can see a rider with a rifle- he is going to hunt.
The palette is filled with various shades of cold blues suitable for reproduction of a winter landscape whereas the characters' costumes are painted in warm red, orange and brown tones. Painting human figures in bright, festive colors is a recognizable trait of the traditional style of Palekh lacquered miniature.
The box is constructed out of paper-mache. Black lacquer covers the exterior and red lacquer covers the interior of the box. Gold paints is used in the patterns that decorate the box's exterior. The lid is hinged, and the box rests on a flat bottom. The work is signed with the artist's name and the village of Palekh.