Pysanka
PYSANKY
Ukrainian Easter egg
IMPORTANT NOTE: This site is no longer being updated, and will go off-line when Apple stops providing web hosting in June of 2012. The content of this site has been move to http://www.pysanky.info, and new photos and information are being added there. Please visit the new site and bookmark it for future reference.
What is a pysanka?
Simply put, it is an Easter egg decorated using a wax resist method. Its name derives from the Ukrainian verb “pysaty,” meaning “to write.” (“Pysanka” is the singular form; “pysanky” is plural.)
But it is much more than that. Ukrainians have been decorating eggs, creating these small jewels, for many generations. There is a ritualistic element involved, magical thinking, a calling out to the gods and goddesses for health, fertility, love, and wealth. There is a yearning for eternity, for the sun and stars, for whatever gods that may be.
The design motifs date back to pre-Christian times, and some harken to the days of the Trypillians, my neolithic ancestors. A triangle that once spoke of the three elements, earth, fire and air, now celebrates the Christian Holy Trinity. The cross which depicted the four cardinal directions is now the symbol of the risen Christ. Sun and star symbols once referred to Dazhboh, the sun god, and now refer to the one Christian God. Grapes, which had a bacchanalian meaning in old times, now more soberly refer to holy communion, to transubstantiation. And the fish, which spoke of a plentiful catch and a full stomach, now stands in for Christ, the fisher of men.
(A note on pronounciation–despite what you may have heard on the Food Network or in a local class, it is pronounced “PIH-sahn-kah” (plural “PIH-sahn-kih”), with all short vowels, not “pie-SAN-kee.”)
Why pysanky?
I have had a life long interest in and fascination with pysanky. I made my first one in Ukrainian school, when I was 7 years old, and became hooked. I have been learning about them and making them ever since. As I have gotten more technically proficient, I have sold them (throughout college and medical school) and still donate them occasionally to charity sales and auctions. I have taught (and still teach) classes in pysanka making (pysankarstvo / писанкарство).
I have shared my love of pysanky with friends world-wide, and have taught the art to friends and family in this country, several hundred orphans in Ukraine, and to friends in India and Australia (so far...)
In recent years, I have begun to learn more about the traditional aspects of my art, and have become more and more entranced by traditional designs and ethnographic patterns. You can see some examples of these pysanky here, and read more about them here and here.
This web site is the product of some forty years' experience with the art and craft of pysankarstvo. I have studied the work of others, and built up a library of books and images. I have written several handouts, in English and Ukrainian, about pysanky. And I even posted an article to Wikipedia.
In 2004 I decided to begin documenting my art, and have begun photographing all of the pysanky in my possession, and the collections of my friends and family. It is an ongoing project which has consumed much time and bandwidth. I have learned a lot in the process.
My Website
I began my website several years ago with a few simple photos, and have been adding to it on a regular basis ever since. As my web skills (and software) improved, I began adding lots of text and diagrams. I have migrated all of my old (pysanka) content and begun adding new content at this current website. It is now easily the largest and most extensive pysanka site on the web (400+ pages at last count).
To find a detailed listing of the contents of my site, or to find a specific page that may have moved since you viewed it last, check out the Index. You can also find a rough breakdown of the organization of the site below; the links will take to various “main” pages.
I’ve also created a custom Google search engine to find results within this site; click on the link below to use it.
Search my site with Google
And I recently (April 2010) added a Pysanka Blog to this site......because I can. Well, actually, it’s to share things I’ve learned or figured out, new ideas, new techniques and new information, before I formally incorporate it into my web site. Have a look here.
ABOUT Pysanky:
Symbolism: pysanky, and the stories they tell (with illustrations)
History and Legends: pysanky, their ancient origins, and the stories told about them
Traditions: Folkways involved in the making and giving of pysanky. I’ve begun adding my translation of sections of Oleksa Voropay’s book.
Types of Decorated Ukrainian Eggs: Krashanky, Dryapanky and more
Ukrainian Regions: A bit about Ukrainian ethnography and regional pysanky, as well as the Ukrainian alphabet and transliteration to English.
Pysankarstvo / Писанкарство: this section has just about everything you need to know about making pysanky (or will eventually). I discuss technical aspects of making pysanky, including:
basic step-by-step directions
Basic and additional supplies
more advanced and detailed instructions
chemistry of pysankarstvo
basic traditional divisions of the pysanka
how to create some of the traditional motifs
There is also a downloads section, with handouts that I have created over the years, instruction sheets, a large number of step-by-step patterns (including many traditional regional ones), children’s handouts and even a few Ukrainian-language powerpoint presentations. Tis section is constantly being expanded and improved, so it is worth checking once in a while.
Pysanka Classes: photos of people making pysanky and the pysanky they have made. I’ve taught pysanky on four continents now, and have taken pictures of many of my students at work and the pysanky they’ve created.
Teaching Pysanky: Help for pysanka makers who teach or would like to teach. UNDER CONSTRUCTION.
Books: there have been many books published on the subject of pysanky, and I have accumulated a lot of them over the years. I am creating an annotated bibliography with my reviews(sometimes) and sources for the books, if known.
Museums: lists and descriptions of museums with pysanka collections, including the Museum of the Pysanka in Kolomyia. UNDER CONSTRUCTION
PHOTOS of Pysanky (and other decorated eggs):
My Modern Pysanky: On these pages you will find photos of pysanky that I myself have have created. Some are diasporan patterns, others could best be described as “art eggs.” I have photographed all of my old ones, and photograph the news ones, in batches, as they are created. Each year I post the “annual Easter collection” and a group photo (poster) of that year’s new designs (some mine, many copied from or inspired by other sources). I’ve also begun re-creating many traditional designs from various sources, and posting them by region (see next section). My modern (non-folk) pysanky are sorted into these sections:
Old Pysanky (pre-2003)
New Pysanky (including brown eggs)
My Traditional Pysanky: This is my ever-expanding collection of traditional Ukrainian folk pysanky. I have recreated designs from many different sources, and brought them together here, grouped by ethnographic region. I’ve included information on the ethnographic regions represented, and some maps. So far, I have uploaded
These sections are in varying degrees of completion. There are also sections on drop-pull pysanky, and on the Sorokoklyn (40 triangle) pysanka, a pattern that is found throughout Ukraine. For teachers and fellow pysanka-makers, I have included many downloadable .pdf files of step-by-step traditional pysanka patterns here.
Pysanky from Ukraine: Photos of pysanky that I have collected during my travels in Ukraine. They include traditional, Hutzul, and Trypillian styles, as well as some that are pure flights of fancy by the pysankarka.
Pysanka Galleries: Photos of pysanky made by my relatives and friends, as well as photos of pysanka collections belonging to my friends and relatives. Some of the eggs in these collections were made by me (particularly those belonging to my mother and sister-in-law).
Variations on the Pysanka: I have lots of photos of decorated eggs which are not pysanky. I’ve collected these in my travels, many in Ukraine, but others from countries as disparate as Ecuador and Ethiopia (and a few from Pier One). Decorating eggs seems to be a worldwide activity.
About Ukrainian EASTER:
Ukrainian Easter: an essay (with photos) about Ukrainian Easter customs and traditions. I hope to expand this eventually, based on my translations of the Ukrainian folk tradition literature.
Ukrainian Easter Cards: I’ve collected many cards over the years, most of which have depictions of pysanky on them. They are interesting both for the folk background they provide, and as a source of design ideas.
Pysanka Post Cards: Ukrainian post cards with pysanky on them. These were generally not, with the exception of the vintage cards, Easter greeting cards, simply post cards of attractively decorated eggs.
And I have lots of other cards and handouts of interest to the pysanka maker. These, too, will slowly be added to the site, as I digitize them, so keep checking for new material!
I hope you enjoy my site. Drop me a note if you get a chance!
PLEASE NOTE: this website is configured to web standards, not Explorer or Mozilla standards. If you are
having trouble viewing any of the pages, have missing graphics, skewed text or other problems,
consider trying the following:
1) Setting the text size to “medium” in your browser
2) Using a browser that meets web standards, such as Safari or Opera
Also, please do let me know about any missing graphics. Things sometimes just disappear, and need to be tweaked to reload. My most recent software upgrade (9-2009) has messed up some margins, fonts and graphics. I think I’ve gotten them all, but have probably missed a few here and there.
Be advised that the content on these pages is my work, except where noted. The text, photos and illustrations have been put here to share; if you wish to print them out for personal use, or for teaching purposes, please feel free to do so. If you wish to reproduce them on your website, or in another publication, please ask first. You can contact me via the e-mail link below.
Back to MAIN home page of this site.
Pysanka Index.
