Vladimir Potapov

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Ì: Will you, please, tell us about your childhood, your parents, your hobbies. What led you to the jeweler’s art?
OD: The families of my parents were subjected to repression and were banished to the town of Narym. That is in Siberia, in the northern part of the Tomsk region. In 1951 my parents moved to the town of Novokuznetsk that was called Stalinsk in those years. And I was born there. As far as I remember, all my childhood closets were heaped up with plasticine and albums containing my drawings. Unfortunately, nothing remained. I molded things, drew pictures, was passionate about reading: at the beginning, I was crazy about adventure books and, later, I fell in love with the historic literature, which is still my favorite.
After graduating from school I entered a construction college, although I was never attracted by this profession. A few years later I was drafted into the army. It happened so that my military service was in Moscow, where I never missed a chance to go to the Tretyakovskaya Gallery and other arts museums. After getting back home I continued studying and started working. I was going to join the Krasnoyarskoe Arts School. However, things turned different. In 1975 I became an engraver’s apprentice and soon found a job in the town of Mezhdurechensk. And precisely there I started to dream of becoming a jeweler.

ÅÌ: When did you start to consider yourself being a craftsman? Whom could you call your teachers?
OD: It was decided to hire more people for the jewelry shop, so I got there without any assistance. I learned the new profession quite quickly: in a few years I was already able to do any work and I got engaged in doing sophisticated things. Experienced craftsmen helped me, of course. In return, I offered them to engrave rings and bracelets for free and they were giving me those items with pleasure. Those items were made of gold and silver, so it gave me an opportunity for an additional practice. I tried not to repeat pictures and I started doing things real fast as far as engraving and neatness of pictures were concerned.
I am especially thankful to the craftsmen of the St. Petersburg jewel school, engraver Vladimir Belov and Mikhail Makarenko, under the guidance of whom I perfected myself in other technologies. Some methods of the jewelry arts I learned by myself. For example, filigree: I learned to make it thanks to my own patience and persistence only. And my ability to draw pictures always helped me as well.
I cannot say that I am an adherent of this or that technology. Some preferences replace others. For example, right now I am devoted to hot enamel and I think that this devotion will last for a long time.
With the startup of the perestroika I opened up a private shop. I based my work on sketches only and, of course, I spent much time on engraving.

ÅÌ: How did you happen to move from Siberia to the Baltic Sea coast? Did this change of places have any influence on your work?
OD: In 1994 I was invited to establish a small company in the Kaliningradskaya region. So, I did not hesitate to go there with my family. I took a great interest in large jewelry forms, mainly, interior items. Finally, I found the most important thing that I was always striving for: I started working with amber. You know, it is no accident that Kaliningrad is called the amber land. This stone is distinguished by its unbelievable beauty and variety of colors. It is not fragile and is suitable for carving.
I give preference in my works to historic themes or images of famous persons. After choosing a theme and before getting down to do sketches I read and look through mountains of literature trying to find typical features of my hero, to understand specifics of those years.
I worked over a year at the Christ the Savior Cathedral in Kaliningrad putting in order church paraphernalia. I did new frameworks for icons, among other things.
Right now I am implementing two projects at the same time: they have to do with chess collections Gothic and Alexander the Great. A lot should be done and it will require between three and four years. I am going to use amber, silver, hot enamel and precious stones. I think that it will be my principal creation for the near future.
But in general I cannot focus on one item for a long time. While doing a sketch or some work, I already start developing mentally the next idea. I just cannot stop. It seems to me that, if I miss a day, then, some basic idea will slip away forever. Sometimes it so happens that a customer suggests an attractive subject and that is also an incentive for a creative work.
At present, I am working simultaneously on 24 items; they are not that simple. I spend all holidays on doing new sketches, thinking over each detail, any dribs and drabs. Nothing should be missed, otherwise it will be much harder to find a right decision in the working process.

ÅÌ: Do you have followers, helping hands? How is your family doing?
OD: There is nothing unusual about my family: a wife, two kids and a granddaughter. My son is my first follower and helper. After graduating from school he joined our team at the shop and has been working with me already for 10 years.
I like to live and work in Svetlogorsk, a beautiful and quiet town on the coast of the Baltic Sea. The intrinsic, the built-in discipline helps me most in my work as well as in life as a whole. You know, the major part of my items is created by the fixed date. And I never allowed to miss it even by a single day. So, it has been going on for all 30 years that I have been doing my favorite jewelry work.