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isolated from the elitist influences and created objects for their own use according to specific styles, following their own tastes. This art was utilitarian and functional. In times gone by it had religious applications and represented the aesthetic expressions of the people. Folk art is collective art, hence it is anonymous. From time to time there appeared folk artists of whom we knew by name, but that was rare. When industry and commerce infiltrated every level of society, true folk art began to wane, even disappear. There were various revivals of folk art, but hardly the real thing. Revivals, however, were beneficial and be cause of them examples of folk art were saved from total loss. Examples of folk art were collected or copied and information about them was gathered. Folk art evolved based on the principles of tradi tional rules and regulations, on laws, on examples which developed over a very long time (we call folk art objects in this category “classical examples”) and adhered to established norms. This type of folk art evolved within the framework of definite precepts from which the folk artist did not deviate. The disorientation in folk art came at the end of the end of the 19th century with the influ ence of industrialization. In order to teach others about folk art, first one must comprehend its essence and appreciate its evol- vement through time. All that we create today in the category of folk art is for the most part applied art because we utilize old examples and adapt them to con temporary needs and materials. Sometimes we make direct copies, as with an embroidered shirt. At times individuals claim that they are creating folk art, but that is impossible in our present situation. It could happen in Ukraine, but not here. Very often this newly hatched folk artist will take a bit of everything and mix it together, claiming he has created a new work of art. It definitely can be a new mix, but hardly a new work of art. Folk art, folk creativity is a field of study. Armed with such knowledge one can then apply it or create within it. Be it organized folk art or applied art created by an individual, it all must be based on traditions, oth erwise it will cause harm. The traditional folk artist knew intuitively what and how to create. Today, we are com pelled to find that intuition through study and also teach this to others. Now we are aware of what we were doing wrong and why. Therefore when we want to teach our young sters about Ukrainian folk art, we must prepare our selves for this task by studying it. First of all we should never use phrases such as: “the most beautiful art in the world” “no one has art like this” “our customs are the most original” When we see similarities in folk art of other nations to ours, we often say “they stole it from us,” or some such nonsense. Our folk art is the most beautiful for us because it is ours, not necessarily because it is the most beautiful in the world. Other nations also have beautiful folk art, including our neighbors. It would be a good idea to learn something about it.. Second, we learn about folk art from its practical aspect (technical expertise). That is not enough at all! It is more important to provide a background for the folk art, explain why and how it was created, to analyze the motifs and their various combinations, to explain the symbolism, etc. It is easiest to begin our discussion about Ukrainian folk art by focusing on an object with which we are most familiar — the folk art costume and its embroidery. We use the folk costume quite often but we don’t have any authentic examples of it, only those that are made here. Therefore, it would be beneficial to our young people if they would become familiar with the regional differences in the Ukrainian folk costume. It is important to realize that there are many more varieties of folk cos tumes than those from Poltava or the Hutsul regions. At times, while watching our children perform dressed in folk costumes at some event, I feel they have the appearance of gypsies, and not Ukrainians. Колиска прибрана рушником з Центральних земель України. Власність 90 Відділу ім. Олени Степанів у Філя- дельфії. Cradle decorated with ritual cloth from the central regions of Ukraine. On loan from Branch 90 of UNWLA in Philadelphia.
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