What’s going on in the painting ‘bride-viewing’ by artist Andrei Rumyantsev?
People crowded into a room. While the elders are busy talking, the girls are fussing around their friend, helping her change into leather boots. All this fuss is for an important reason. A delegation has arrived at the village house to see the bride.
Bride by choice
In the 16th-19th centuries, peasant marriages were concluded not so much out of love, as by agreement (or collusion) between the parents of the groom and the bride. In village families, traditions associated with family life were strictly observed. When it was time to find a chosen one for their son, his father and mother would consider possible candidates. The girl had to be hard-working, beautiful, healthy, well-mannered and her family had to be well-off. As soon as the groom's father and mother made their choice, matchmakers were sent to the potential bride – his godparents, older relatives or a respected person in the village. They had to conduct a "presentation" of the groom and present him in the best possible light.
If there were no fundamental contradictions, they moved on to the next stage – the ‘smotriny’ aka ‘viewing’. First, the groom (to assess the living conditions of the young wife) and then the bride.
Let's get acquainted
Only at bride-viewing could the groom and the bride see each other for the first time (unless, of course, they had already met prior). The future bride came out to the guests in the company of her friends or relatives. And it is this moment that was depicted in the painting by artist Andrei Rumyantsev.
Married friends with headscarves on their heads circle around the girl of a marriageable-looking age, helping her change her shoes. At the bride-viewing, she has to greet the guests in her best outfit. And, if necessary, she can change them several times. If she categorically did not like the groom, the girl could change into everyday clothes and, thus, demonstrate that there will be no wedding. The potential father-in-law in a blue caftan watches these preparations. At a bride-viewing, guests and attendees always expected more than just good manners: the girl had to show whether she knew how to run a household, clean the house and sew.
The potential groom is clearly embarrassed by the fuss and does not know how to avoid the obsessive attention of his elders. However, he does not succeed in this well – the matchmakers have surrounded him and are about to take him by the hand to lead him to the girl. If the bride and groom are suitable for each other, their agreement and, therefore, the upcoming wedding, would be officially announced.
