An image of a bear is a strong stereotype associated with Russia. A country where bears come from and live together with people may be one of the cliché images a foreigner creates in their mind. However, some of them are not so wrong… Toy bears, indeed, live in some Russian homes. And if we stick to the Soviet tradition of bear naming, it would be Misha Medved, but, as a matter of fact, such character as a teddy bear is, also, not a stranger to these places.

It is believed that the teddy bear was created in the USA by Morris Michtom who named it after president Theodor Roosevelt. After the commercial success the toy bear had in the USA, its image started to spread around the world quite rapidly. This led to overthinking of this image by artists around the world for many decades, so even today a teddy bear is one of the most interesting and precious toys among children.

To highlight this interest, I would like to underline Olga Vishnevetskaya's work in the area of teddy bear production. Her Siberian bears are very recognizable because the artist playfully unites stereotypical teddy bear imagery with the way how a typical Russian bear looks like. It is interesting to note that Vishnevetskaya's bears are not meant to be played with. These majestic stuffed animals look like toy masterpieces in their lovely historical costumes' interpretations. The artist tends to assemble them into compositional groups, so the bears would look even more theatrical.

Olga Vishnevetskaya has been honored with the world's most prestigious prizes for her bears. She has been awarded a prize for her talent and creativity. The artist says that making bears for her is some sort of a connection to her ancestors and ancient Siberian traditions. The artist often says that: "We who live in Siberia, love bears and know everything about them".