The People's Art Studio was founded by art historian and teacher Yuri Ivanov in 1993, taking over the educational baton from the art studio of the Minsk Palace of Pioneers and Schoolchildren at the National Center for Artistic Creativity of Children and Youth, headed by the honored teacher of the BSSR and artist Sergei Katkov since 1936.

Today, the studio is taught by experienced teachers of the highest category: Irina Sarnatskaya, Alexei Ivanov, Polina Yurevich, Yuri Ivanov.

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Studio about the studio:

Children's authentic creativity has always been close to the art of modernism, the spirit of the avant-garde, which already at the beginning of the 20th century was the object of attention of professional artists and writers. From the moment of its foundation, the Wostrau art studio turned out to be a timely space for the alternative development of the child's creative activity, a pedagogical laboratory and a new value orientation for the parent community.

Children, freed from the need to act according to established rules and patterns, learned in the studio to think and create for themselves. The values ​​and interests of children's life were reflected in the content of the drawings and the originality of the artistic language. Education in the Wostrau art studio provides the child with unconditional freedom in choosing the content and method of expression, which is formed independently in partnership with the teacher. The boundless curiosity of the child, his assertiveness, coming from the "primitive origins" and the desire to master the environment, allow him to transform everyday events into amazing artifacts in the process of creative play! A small artist is autonomous and quite legitimate on the territory of a large art scene. A child does not have to stand in line to acquire the ability and the right to speak on an equal footing with the adult professional community. He does not need clothes to grow! He is always here and now! In this regard, it is difficult to overestimate the contribution of a child artist to the creation of a national archive of culture, as an unbiased and genuine witness of the times.

It is necessary to realize that the authentic creativity of children, as well as naive art, folklore or art brut, are not at all secondary or less significant phenomena in culture in comparison with the so-called scientist, professional art, but differ only in their nature, motivation and specificity. artistic language, which together helps us to feel the world in all its boundless expressiveness and inconsistency. Our teachers do not impose their adult professional experience on the students. They look for motivation for each child and create an opportunity to get involved in the game-process of creating their own art model. Openness and the prevailing atmosphere of trust help the teacher to notice something significant that is happening in the life of the child, to form the field of his humanitarian interests and values.

At the same time, the studio helps the family to comprehend the features of the aesthetic education of the child in conjunction with modern artistic culture. This undoubtedly contributes to a deeper understanding of the child's life and the formation of common humanitarian values ​​that unite the family. Classes in the studio often take the form of viewing and discussing creative tasks (Open Studio practice). Such a format of classes contributes to the development of critical thinking skills, checks the persuasiveness of the author's statements, develops communication skills, and expands the space for experimentation. Along with practical exercises designed to develop figurative-plastic, spatial and coloristic thinking among the students, considerable attention is paid to involving children in the history of world art culture, participating in art events, preparing exhibition projects, etc. The art studio prioritizes the current visual culture, which, in turn, helps to better understand and take a fresh look at the traditional and classical heritage of world art culture.

In our pedagogical practice, we refer to the experience of understanding the child's soul and the psychology of creativity in the works of such recognized authors as V.V. Zenkovsky, G. Jung, J. Piaget, L.S. modern humanities.

Today, the studio is taught by experienced teachers of the highest category: Irina Sarnatskaya, Alexei Ivanov, Polina Yurevich, Yuri Ivanov, whose work at different times was awarded various honorary awards, but their main pride is the achievement of their students.

Studios are regular participants and laureates of domestic and international exhibitions and competitions, as well as numerous projects of children's and youth creativity, organized by such prestigious art institutions as Center pour L | Unesco (Troyes, France), the State Tretyakov Gallery, Children's Art Centers Finland, Poland, Israel, Sweden, Estonia, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Japan, China, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Armenia, India and other countries.

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Selected dates:

1936

An art studio of the Minsk Palace of Pioneers and Schoolchildren was opened in the National Center for Artistic Creativity of Children and Youth. The head was the honored teacher of the BSSR and artist Sergei Petrovich Katkov.

Late 80s early 90s

A turning point and historically significant time. It was the expectation of change and renewal, including in the field of artistic culture and education.

1993

The art studio was reorganized into the folk art studio Wostrau by art critic and teacher Yuri Ivanov.

2008 and 2009

The pupils became the winners of the prestigious competition, which was held twice in the post-Soviet space by the world-famous Tate Modern Gallery of Contemporary Art (London).

Since 2020

The Wostrau art studio is working on a new site (at Minsk, Masherova st., 17).