Halas Mykhailo

Member of the Union of Artists of the USSR (1962). Member of the Union of Artists of the USSR (1968).

Vilkhivka village, which is in Irshava region, is still famous for the rich traditions of folk ceramics. For many decades Vilkhiv potters have created a real miracle, transforming ordinary clay in the magical works which they used in everyday life. Each of them is a touch of warm hands that create a unique beauty for the benefit and joy of people. Thanks to their talent, the masters have made a significant contribution to the cultivation of high aesthetic tastes, the enrichment of contemporary folk culture. One of the brightest masters was Mykhailo Halas who is known far beyond our borders.

He was born on 3 December 1921 in Vilkhivka village. For the first time, he professionally sat down for the potter's wheel when a fifteen-year-old boy, and for more than five decades he did not part with his favourite art. For many years, Mykhailo Halas was working in the Irshava District Industrial Plant as a master of the ceramic workshop and retired in January 1982. During his creative path, Mykhailo Halas created thousands of pottery items. Some of them became useful for people as objects of everyday life, others were real works of art.

Mykhailo showed himself as a true artist – a creator who went beyond the scope of the craftsmanship. He created unique gourmet products that combine tradition and innovation. The artist's works are marked by perfect proportions, a harmonious combination of decor with the form. Among his works, there are dovzhanky, korchaky, plates, jugs, etc. He painted the products on wet by angobs, applied the "cut" technique. He used natural dyes. In addition to achromatic (black and white), he usually applied ochre, brown, green.

He started participating in the exhibition when a mature master. At the Republican exhibitions of Ukrainian folk and decorative arts, held in 1957 and 1960, his products were widely represented. In December 1962, without passing a candidate's experience, on the advice of Adalbert Boretskyi, Vasyl Svyda, Andrii Kotska, he was accepted into the Union of Artists of the USSR, and in 1968 – to the Union of Artists of the Ukrainian SSR. In 1968, at the World Exposition of Amateur Masters in Montreal, Canada, his work was marked by a small gold medal. And in 1977, he was awarded the gold medal of the All-Union Festival of Amateur Art in Moscow. Personal exhibitions were in 1978 and 1982 in Uzhhorod.

The artist works are stored in the National Museum of Ukrainian Decorative Arts, the Transcarpathian Museum of Folk Architecture and Life, Kolomyia Museum of Folk Art of Hutsulshchyna and Pokuttia, the Memorial Manor – Halas Museum in Vilkhivtsi village. At the film studio named after O. Dovzhenko, it was produced the films "Circle" and "Potters of Vilkhivka" on the creativity of Halas. The catalogue with his works was published in 1982 in Uzhhorod. In 2001, on the wall of the house where the master lived and worked, it was set a memorial plaque.

The artist died in July 1993. He was buried in his native village.

Volodymyr Myshanych