"Cabin in Winter" Russian lacquer box

Artist: N. Gusok
Village: Fedoskino style 
Size: 3.5" x 2.75" x 1.5"  
Year: 2003

This Russian lacquer box presents a peaceful winter landscape, painted with exquisite realism and subtle emotion. The scene shows a snow-covered forest clearing with a wooden cabin, its windows glowing faintly with warmth, nestled among snow-laden trees. A winding path and delicate bare branches in the foreground lead the viewer's eye into the composition.

The sky is particularly striking—it features mother-of-pearl inlay, which adds a soft, iridescent shimmer that shifts with the light, creating the effect of a glowing, ethereal twilight. Hints of orange and gold in the sky suggest either a sunset or sunrise, contrasting gently with the cool tones of the snow.

The box is signed by the artist and marked with the village of Fedoskino, known for this more realistic style and for incorporating mother-of-pearl and oil paints. The edges are bordered with a subtle, classic gold pattern. The box has a hinge. The box was done more than 20 years ago so the lacquer does not have that perfect glass-like smoothness, but it is aging well and has no cracks or significant flaws.