Vitaly Kim's glass fairy tale came from the Kaluga region to Tula

The information portal "Brands of Russia" reports that in the Tula branch of the museum-reserve V.D. Polenova - The Center for Family History has launched a magical, environmentally friendly and very beautiful exhibition. It is especially surprising that the focus of attention of the authors of the exhibition "From the Bottle - New Year" is an object that we usually throw away. In the Tarusa workshop of Vitaly Kim, fabulous stained-glass windows, magnificent tiles, artistic lamps, Christmas decorations are born from an ordinary glass bottle ...

The master created the first stained glass window from discarded used glass in 2018. Several years passed, and at the capital's stained glass workshop "Gutarnya" the project "From the Bottle" was born. In 2021, the authors of the idea organized a glass collection point in Tarusa and began to make new original things from discarded bottles.

Residents and the city administration supported the eco-project. Every week the craftsmen get about 100 kg of glass. About a tenth is suitable for artistic work. The rest is sent to the glass wool manufacturing plant. At the same time, a children's circle on artistic glass processing and master classes for adults appeared in Tarusa. Now a production facility is being built for the processing of bottles and small-scale production of products from them. An exhibition is planned for the next year at the Tarusa Museum of Local Lore.

“The bottle is a small bundle of beautiful colored glass. You just need to unfold it and plunge into stained glass art,” Vitaly Kim is sure.

The exposition "From a Bottle - New Year" opens with a technological board, which schematically shows the options and ways of working with bottle glass.

First, the bottle is cut and a blank is made from it for unfolding in an oven at 800 degrees. The result is colored, square or rectangular glass suitable for stained glass with an original “snowy” texture. Bottles give a good palette: blues, greens, yellows, browns and marsh colors.

There are other ways to use the former glass containers. For example, a bottle can be immediately deformed and processed in an oven, giving it an interesting configuration. Or initially divide into parts and process each of them separately. In particular, from the melted bottom, cute Christmas decorations are obtained.

In addition, glass chips can be stuffed into a mold and baked at temperatures closer to 900 degrees. Tiles are shown as an example of such work at the exhibition.

But the stained glass technique reveals the widest horizons. It is also the most labor intensive. Each piece of sheet glass obtained from the bottle is cut, polished, wrapped in copper tape and soldered into a colored pattern. However, that's not all. If desired, powdered colored glass can be applied with an additional elegant pattern. After application, it is sintered into a monolith with the main background.

The execution of complex stained glass works takes several months, but they also serve for centuries.

For the pair "Day" and "Night" the old window frames became the basis. The lower glass is a stained-glass window with a pattern, and on the upper one there is the finest frosty pattern. It is also made using a special technique and looks like a real one, only it does not melt in the heat.

Colored glasses form beautiful pictures. A beam of light fills them with living magic. Lanterns are a native theme for the Polenov family. Back in the 19th century, a tradition was born to create man-made lamps for Natalya's Day. Today they are stored in the storerooms of the museum. Perhaps in the near future Polenov's collection will be replenished with eco-friendly lamps made from recycled bottle glass.

The vernissage of the exhibition became a celebration of communication with like-minded people.

Yulia Matrenina, director of the Kaluga Garbage Museum, told the audience about simple solutions for organizing an eco-friendly life. Before Tula, the exposition "From the Bottle" was presented at their place. For five months the exhibition was seen by 20 thousand people. Interestingly, at one of the museum locations, the guests break glass bottles, fortunately, and thus participate in the first stage of glass processing - crushing. Then the cullet is sent to a specialized enterprise.

A musical gift for the audience was the performance of the Suffix group. Its inspirer Ildar Shaimyardyanov plays dozens of instruments, including glass ones. Crystal harp, flute, bells... Even the musician's guitar is made of glass.

Ildar is called a person who owns the sounds of higher spheres. His work affects a person at the subconscious level. Each composition is unique and aimed at spiritual perfection.

The exhibition "From the Bottle - New Year" will stay at the Tula Family History Center until January 7th.