From the very beginning the Museum had been interested in history of local art. The organization of the Museum attracted the local artists. M.V. Boskin, V.I. Khrustachev, V.F. Mei became members of the Commission, and V.I. Sokolov was the head of the Commission for some time. In December 1920, he organized the first exhibition displaying 200 works, depicting the Lavra.

The following step in the investigation of the local artistic traditions was the exhibition of handicrafts displayed in 1922. The organizer V.I. Sokolov played an noticeable role in the development of local arts.



After the exhibition they decided “to preserve the exhibits for the foundation of the permanent museum of the local crafts”. That exhibition was the beginning of the collections of the Sergiev Local History Museum.

In 1930, the exhibition specimens passed to the basic part of the History and Art Museum , comprising a considerable collection of folk art and handicrafts.