Pysanka: Artful eggs

Of all the multicultural traditions that make up the Canadian mosaic, the pysanka, or Ukrainian Easter egg, is one of the most beautiful and symbolic. Every year, in preparation for Easter, Ukrainian-Canadians spend busy hours "writing" Easter eggs, as their ancestors have done for generations.

A family tradition
Joan Nakonechny of Vernon, B.C., author of Pysanka: Easter Egg Art, learned to write eggs as a little girl growing up in Pine River, Man. "For two weeks before Easter," she recalls, "we would meet at Granny's to decorate eggs. Hers was the kind of house you wanted to visit, because Granny knew how to make learning fun. She always had lots of time to help you and she always had a cookie or a hot cinnamon bun waiting when you finished."

For Linda Lazarowich, former director and chief curator of the Ukrainian Museum of Canada in Saskatoon, decorating eggs was a tender, quiet family time. "At the end of a long day on the farm, after the dinner dishes had been done, the dyes would come out. The eggs had been gathered that morning. We had our own bees and beeswax. My father made the stylus (writing instrument) with dowelling and little pieces of brass saved from large wall calendars. Only the dyes were purchased. Before beginning, Baba, my grandmother, would always recite a prayer: 'God, please give us the help to make these eggs.' "

Pysanka's origin
The word pysanka comes from the Ukrainian verb psalty, to write; the art involves writing designs on an egg with melted beeswax, which flows from a stylus called a kystka. This wax-resist technique is done on different coloured backgrounds produced by dipping the egg into a series of dye baths ranging from light to darker colours.

The colours and design motifs used are steeped in symbolism. For example, the star represents God's love, and a straight line encircling the egg stands for the continuous thread of life. Yellow is the symbol of light and purity and speaks of youth and happiness. Red, the magic colour of folklore, is associated with children.

Once the eggs are finished, they're taken to church to be blessed, after which they are believed to have the power to bring God's grace into a household. So pysanky have become special Easter gifts to family members and friends -- a token of love and respect and a wish for health and happiness. At Easter, a pysanka blesses every Ukrainian home.

Many women still pass on their knowledge to the next generation, in true Ukrainian fashion. With the skilled direction of Joan Nakonechny, Canadian Living Magazine presents this heritage to you.

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