It all started with fish

Zakharova received the 2013 China Right Here Award last month in Beijing for her contribution to promoting Chinese folk art. Photo provided to China Daily

In recent years, her efforts have expanded to organizing arts exhibitions centering on the exchange and inheritance of folk culture through children's collaboration and creativities among the SCO countries.

"Collecting Chinese folk toys became part of my life," says Zakharova, who would hunt down local traditional toys wherever she traveled around China in the 1980s.

Her collection includes all genres, such as the rattle-drum, clay figurine, paper-cut and traditional Lunar New Year's paintings.

"I study while I collect, because I think without studying the culture behind those toys, the process of collecting is incomplete," she says.

Zakharova admits that she was at a loss initially. "Fish is the symbol of affluence while peach represents longevity. Mouse is a horrible creature to the European, but here, it is one of the most auspicious Chinese zodiac signs!"

Every province in China has its unique toys embedded with local tradition, such as the ninigou, literally muddy dog, in Huaiyang county, Henan province.

Moreover, some folk toys are associated with Chinese mythology, such as Fu Xi and Nyu Wa, who were the first gods to come out of chaos. Nyu Wa, with her human body and serpent tail, is the mother creator.

"Learning all this, on one hand, is interesting, but on the other hand, it is very complicated for me." Zakharova adds. "However, little by little, I have discovered that there are common themes shared by Chinese and Western cultures.

"Two figures standing by each other usually implies love, as in China, two butterflies dancing in the air is about the story of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, which can be compared with the classical love story of Romeo and Juliet."

After eight years' collecting folk toys, Zakharova organized a Chinese Folk Toy Fair at the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts with her unique collection on Sept 1, 1988. During the one and a half month's exhibition period, the fair attracted more than 10,000 visitors.