‘Pysanky For Peace’ and the Ukrainian Easter Egg’s Eternal Message of Hope
They’re called pysanky, elaborately decorated Easter eggs with a tradition and story older than even the country of Ukraine where they originated.
The creation of a pysanka is as wonderous a process as is the finished egged, especially considering it’s done not on a hardboiled egg like most Easter eggs but on a hollow eggshell. Depending on the complexity and detail of the pattern, one pysanka can take upwards of twenty hours or more to complete.
Today these fragile, stunningly intricate works of art are connecting Ukrainians with each other and the world, giving them comfort, a sense of home, and a bit of joy in the face of genocide. Perhaps this is why pysanky have been revered and beloved by Ukrainians as a symbol of hope for thousands of years.
But this year, pysanky are not only raising the spirits of Ukrainians but much needed funds for relief efforts in their war-ravaged country, more on that later.
A report on NPR’s “All Thing’s Considered,” explains how this tradition lives on and hopes to make a difference in the humanitarian war effort.
Pysanky for Peace is raising funds for humanitarian relief efforts in Ukraine by having artists create 100,000 beautiful pysanky that donors can sponsor on a sliding scale. From their website,
“It is said that the Hutzuls–Ukrainians who live in the Carpathian Mountains of Western Ukraine–believe that the fate of the world depends upon the pysanka.
As long as the egg decorating custom continues, the world will exist.
Though pysanka are typically made at Easter time, it is with this folk-tale in mind, and the unfolding atrocities happening in Ukraine with the current invasion of Russia – the Pysanky for Peace Project came to be.”
To support their efforts, click this link to
Sponsor A Pysanky
For more information and other ways to support them visit PysankyForPeace
Follow them on Twitter @Pysanky4Peace
Instagram @pysankyforpeace
Information of the Wenham Museum Pysanky Exhibit in MA HERE
Information on the Ukrainian Institute in New York City pysanky exhibit HERE
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(Main image courtesy of Ukrainian Institute website)
