Sculptors and artists in the Ukraine are putting the finishing touches to one of the country’s newest and most unique tourist attractions: the Seven Lovely Pysankas Sculpture Park, which will become a part of the famous Pysanka Museum in the city of Kolomiya, Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast.
“Pysankas” are highly treasured, decorative Easter Eggs that are quite unique to the Ukraine, because, rather painting the designs onto hard boiled eggs like in other cultures, the artisans instead ‘write’ their intricate designs onto raw eggs using what’s known as the wax-resist method.
Beeswax-decorated eggs can be found all over Eastern Europe of course, from Poland to Romania to Serbia, but true Pysankas only incorporate traditional Ukrainian folk designs.
Kolomiya’s Pysanka Museum is said to be the only one of its kind in the world. It’s believed to house the largest known collection of Pysanka Eggs as well – more than 10,000 in total, featuring unique designs from each oblast (province) in the Ukraine.
The Seven Lovely Pysankas Sculpture Park, located opposite the museum, is the culmination of a project bringing together cultural leaders, artists, sculptors and students from seven different regions of the Ukraine. Together, participants have created seven magnificent stone pysanka sculptures, each one featuring a design unique to the region where the artisans hail from, reports Pravda.
The Seven Lovely Pysankas Sculpture Park is set to open at the end of this month.
Images courtesy of Luba Petrusha, via Wikipedia