The name of Volodymyr Balyberdin, a jewelry artist, is well-known to many Ukrainian art critics because he is the only one among Ukraine’s artists who produces expensive folk-style jewelry such as brooches in the form of a family tree or clusters of guelder-rose berries and signet rings shaped like the sun. Balyberdin has had many a personal exhibition but the one that is now open in the Historical Jewelry Museum is special to him because he has not seen these items for over 20 years.
“At different points in time I gave most of the pieces that are gathered for this exhibition to various museums in Ukraine. The majority of them went to the Historical Jewelry Museum in Kyiv (more than 10 items). So here you can see my works dating back to the 1980s and the early 21st century. When the exhibition closes, they will return to their places in museums,” says Balyberdin. “One of my early works that I donated to a museum is a mother of pearl comb. It essentially marks the beginning of my creative career because with this comb I participated in my first exhibitions. One glance at this item is enough to say that it is made in Ukraine because it includes a folk ornament-the family tree.
“This exhibition is unique to me in that it offers an opportunity to compare what I made 20-30 years ago with what I am working on now. The jewelry gathered here proves that I have never betrayed my style which is aimed at recreating national symbols. Perhaps this is why all of my works are still popular, regardless of their creation time, while many of my colleagues follow fashion trends in the art of jewelry and conform to them. For this reason their works quickly become irrelevant.”
Virtually every art piece produced by Balyberdin features folk motifs: earrings and brooches with carved images of the Firebird, bracelets with sinuous continous lines symbolizing eternity, signet rings with doves, etc. As the artist says, on many occasions his works were commissioned by high-ranking officials, and at one of his exhibitions Volodymyr Shcherbytsky’s wife purchased a pearl brooch of his making. Balyberdin’s works are on display in museums in various countries because for many years he has worked for art saloons and from there his jewelry found its way to museum and private collections around the world.
Looking at cross-shaped earrings or necklaces, it is hard to believe that they are made of mammoth bones that are over 15,000 years old. As the jeweler says, he often used walrus and whale tusks brought all the way from Yakutia, petrified wood, shells, and, naturally, mother of pearl. Sometimes he makes metal things-statuettes in the form of birds or fish. These also carry elements of Ukrainian folk designs such as the family tree carved on fish fins as the symbol of the family. The artist claims that he knows nearly all the secrets of jewelry art which helps him achieve the desired effect.
“In order to make a small, 3-by-4-centimeter brooch shaped like a cluster of guelder-rose berries, one needs to carve half-a-millimeter holes in the shells in the right places,” says Balyberdin. “This can be done with a special graver-burin-that looks like an awl. You need to put it through the holes 10 times from each side to make them perfectly smooth.”
Now Balyberdin is taking a short break from his creative endeavors. After the exhibition closes in late December he will start implementing new ideas which he produces on a daily basis.
