Saturday April 8, 2023
12-1pm
Complimentary- no ticket necessary!
Join us for a complimentary pysanky egg demonstration by Jennifer Domal!
Jennifer Domal is an award-winning contemporary folk artist, educator, and Master Artisan of the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen. She was first introduced to the art of writing pysanky at the age of three, learning to use beeswax to create intricate designs on eggshells.
Pysanky is rebellion against the forces of evil, both in legend and in history. There is power in the history of pysanky, tied into tradition, ethnicity, and identity. These talismans grasp that ancient power and bring it forward into the modern world.
In Slavic cultures during pagan times, the egg was seen as a symbol of rebirth. Eggs were decorated and used as part of rituals to worship the Sun god, using the first fruits of the land to repel the deep dark winter and its accompanying demons. The dyed eggs invited spring and its associated good spirits.
Pysanky are written with melted beeswax directly on blown dry eggshells, rather than drawn or painted. The artist keeps their hand steady while turning the egg to create the design. Specially prepared dyes and patterns have been passed down matriarchally for millenia. Designs varied from village to village, region to region, home to home, as they do now.
Learn more about Jennifer and her current exhibit, Talisman, here!