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In America, Ukrainians are most identified with pysanky, Ukrainian Easter eggs. This folk art object has done more to popularize our name than anything else. But a pysanka also has its meaning and traditions. It is guardian with magical powers, dressed in symbolic lan guage which our people long ago understood and believed in. A pysanka had to be made in specific cir cumstances to contain the magical powers. Today, almost every Ukrainian woman and girl makes pysanky. But again, without studying the orna mental definitions, the reasons for making the pysanky and the meaning of the symbolic signs, one cannot approach this art form in the proper manner. There is a lot of wrongdoing in the art of pysanky decorating. Let us consider the application of motifs on the pysanka which only hint at what they represent. Motifs were never presented realistically. Today, however, there are a lot of naturalistic poppy flowers, pussy willows, etc., on the pysanky. When studying pysanky decorat ing we must look to the traditional examples, of which there are many. One only needs to find them. Of course one cannot forbid anybody from applying realistic or natural images to an egg. Only then it is not a pysanka but a painted egg. There are thousands of designs for pysanky and not because there are so many motifs. To the contrary, there are only a few motifs — the rosette, the triangle, the four armed cross, the endless lines. The ability to create a large number of designs, using these few motifs, underlined the proficiency in the craft of the artisan. Another erroneous approach to pysanky deco rating is to learn the technique without learning the essence and the meaning. Let us talk about ceramics. Outside of a few arti sans, I don’t know if any one really makes Ukrainian ceramics. Mostly, people paint ceramic motifs on pre pared molds or forms, which are not always similar to Ukrainian molds. Our children and youth should get to know the correct appearance of Ukrainian ceramics and learn the proper colors pertinent to various regions of Ukraine. Embroidered ceramics should be outlawed specifically. We can teach our youngsters about woodcarving, show them the finest examples and tell them what is being done wrong today. Not everything that is pro duced in Ukraine at this time is good or made according to classical standards. There are numerous distortions which must be critically examined. At the same time our shortcomings must be corrected. Many people will say to me — who needs all this, I am Ukrainian but not because there is an embroidery in my home. That is true. You don’t have to own folk art objects or know about them to be Ukrainian. But our youth needs to learn something substantial about this essence of Ukrainianism — the language, history, litera ture and culture. Folk art is a part of our culture. I am familiar with Ukrainian leaders, politicians, who know little or nothing of their history or political thought. Is this beneficial? Hardly! I know people who are continually making fun of youngsters or older emi grants who do not use the Ukrainian language in the proper way. Yet, these people’s Ukrainian is riddled with fundamental errors which they make no attempt to correct. We must raise our appreciation of the Ukrainian arts to its deserved level and to the level of proper prac tical application. We cannot allow it to be destroyed in the way we destroyed the tradition of caroling in Amer ica. Thank God caroling is experiencing rebirth in Ukraine. Just as the Ukrainian people preserved their folk arts within the framework of tradition, so tradition saved the people who make up our nation. During the times when our leadership switched sides, leaving the people to the whims of fate, they, the people preserved our Ukrainian identity. Let us therefore, give our folk art the place it deserves when we impart this knowledge to our children. (The above is the English translation from an address given by Lubow Wolynetz during a three region confer ence held on March 31, 1990. The conference was sponsored by the New York, New Jersey and New Eng land Regional Councils of the UNWLA. It dealt with the themes: Culture and Education; Museum and the Arts.) Photo: Lubomyr Zielyk Фото: Любомир Зєпик UKRAINIAN WOMAN IN TWO WORLDS CONFERENCE Branch 4 of the Ukrainian National Women’s League of America will be hosting the third “ Ukrainian Woman in Two Worlds Conference.” It will be held at the Embassy Suites Hotel, Exit #5 off Route 287, in Piscata- way, NJ on the weekend of Oct. 12-14,1990. Panels of experts will discuss the various current aspects of social, political and personal life of the Ukrainian-American woman. All topics covered will be especially timely in light of the tremendous political upheavals occuring in Ukraine and the rest of the Soviet Union. For more information and registration materials, please contact: Ms. Luba Bilowchtchuk, (201) 566-3492, Registration Chairperson, or Ms. Luba Siryj, (201) 297- 1934, General Chairperson.
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