Decorating Pisanki Easter Eggs

Polish American Cultural Center’s wonderful, multi-talented, Bernadette Zubel, came to St. Casimir’s church to teach others the Polish tradition of decorating Easter eggs, called Pisanki. The egg symbolizes new life and Christ’s resurrection.  However, the oldest Polish pisanki (the traditional name for painted eggs, singular: pisanka) date back to the end of the 10th century. 

There are different ways to decorate eggs: kraszanki (also called malowanki) are a type of pisanki colored with natural dyes obtained from onion peel, walnut shells, beet juice and various flower petals, cooked until they give up their colors. An egg is then cooked in the resulting dye. Nowadays, artificial food dyes are also used. People would often scratch the egg to reveal the color of the shell and thus make a pattern on a pisanka. These are called drapanki.

For more information on Pisanki and Polish folk art, visit our center to learn more! We have a whole room in our museum dedicated to Polish Folk Art!

Also here is an article: Guide to Polish Folk Art

Bernadette Zubel
Source: cleveland.com

The tradition of food blessing at Easter, which has early-medieval roots in Christian society, possibly originated from a pagan ritual.^[1][2] The tradition is said to date from the 7th century in its basic form, the more modern form containing bread and eggs (symbols of resurrection and Christ) is said to date from the 12th century.^[3]

Please join us for our annual Traditional Wigilia.

The most important day is Christmas Eve called Wigilia (Vee-gil-ee-ya). This is when family members from far away come home to celebrate a very special meatless meal together. It is prepared according to Polish traditions that have been passed down for centuries. Before sitting down at the table, the oldest person in the group passes a thin wafer, called opłatek (o-pwa-tek) to each person present. It is similar to communion wafer but rectangular in shape, with religious nativity scenes stamped into it. Each person breaks off a small piece of the other person’s wafer and eats it while hugging and exchanging good wishes for the coming year. All transgressions are forgiven and family members start over with a clean slate in their relationships with one another. For this reason, the Opłatek is called the “bread of love.” Then dinner is served, and only one person is allowed to leave the table at a time. Poles believe that it is bad luck not to eat at least a little bit of each food served at Wigilia. After the meal, Polish Christmas carols called “kolędy” are sung and gifts are exchanged by the Christmas Tree called “choinka.”   

The Kosciuszko Foundation is accepting applications for summer study programs at the Jagiellonian University in Krakow. Undergraduate students have the opportunity to earn college credit while studying language and courses such as history, literature, and contemporary Poland.

Students of Polish descent have the opportunity to apply for funding to attend the Jagiellonian University’s programs via the Foundation’ s Tomaszkiewicz-Florio Scholarships. Candidates must be at least 18 years of age by the first day of the program and have a high school diploma. Graduating high school students, undergraduate freshmen, sophomores, juniors and seniors are eligible to apply. Two letters of recommendation, transcripts with a minimum GPA of 3.0, an essay/personal statement, and financial need are part of the requirements for scholarship funding. The deadline to apply for a scholarship is April 17th. Scholarships are awarded on a competitive basis.

Classes begin in July. Programs include language classes, afternoon classes on Polish history, workshops, Polish traditions, meals, a shared room, and sightseeing on weekends. Students are responsible for registration fees, single room fees, fees which are not covered by the scholarship, airfare and out-of-pocket expenses.

For additional details regarding eligibility, how to apply for a scholarship, and course descriptions may be found at www.thekf.org/kf/programs/study/

or contact Dr. Kathleen Farkas at kathleen.farkas@case.edu or 216.368.2276.

8-Week Continuing Education Non-Credit Course
Lesław Tetla, Ph.D.
2016 Cleveland State University Visiting Polish Scholar and Kosciuszko Fellow
Dean of the Academy of Fine Arts in Katowice, Poland
When: October 5— November 30
Day & Time: Wednesdays, 7:00-9:00 pm
Location: The Polish American Cultural Center
6501 Lansing Avenue, Cleveland
Cost: $125 for the 8-week course
Course Description: This course will examine Polish art and Polish institutions of
culture that are currently in the process of social and economic transformation.
Registration: Visit http://www.csuohio.edu/class/world-languages/worldlanguages
and click on the “Continuing Education (CE)” link.
You may also register in person on the first day of class.
Questions? Please contact Dr. Edward Horowitz, the director of CSU Polish Studies,
at e.horowitz@csuohio.edu
CSU Polish Studies is grateful to Gene Bak and the Polish American Cultural Center for hosting this course.

September 11th at 1:30 pm, just after lunch
This is the second time we have asked prominent guests from Poland to present recent trends in social science and culture to our Cleveland community. Just like last year, this second symposium has developed from the collaboration of Dr. Edward Horowitz, Director of the Polish Studies Initiative, Cleveland State University; Dr. Kathy Farkas, “Invisible Groups in Today’s Poland”, Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, CWRU; and Gene Bak, Polish- American Cultural Center.
Everybody is welcome to come to the Center on Sept. 11 at noon to have lunch with our guests! Then join us for the presentation afterwards.
In this issue of Forum, you will find information about our guests and their presentations (below) as well as reflection papers written by Case Western Reserve University students who visited Poland this year as a part of the “Invisible Groups in Today’s Poland” travel-study program. There is also a reflection “paper” written by our guest, Ewa Sadkowska, concerning her family’s arrival to the United States. Maja and Zosia are the beautiful daughters of Ewa and her husband Lesław Tetla. You may meet them during the Symposium as well.
Speakers and their presentations
Łukasz Koperski, PhD student in the Institute of Sociology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań. Member of the Polish Sociological Association and the Polish Association of Schools of Social Work. His research interests concern social policy, social economy, social contexts of disability, gerontology, and counseling in the media. Member of the research group realizing local public policy programs (diagnosis and strategies) in Poznań.
Title of talk: Social Economy in Poland: innovative examples of community involvement in solving local problems.
Abstract: The social economy is a rapidly growing sector combining two aspects: economic (economic development, goods production, reducing unemployment) and social (solving social problems, social inclusion, strengthening of social capital). The Polish social economy is one of the best functioning in the European Union. We can indicate innovative measures aimed at combining these aspects, including crowdfunding, corporate social responsibility, cause related marketing, and social revitalization. Such activities allow the inclusion of the public in the process of organizing support, moving away from the traditional principles of charity and strengthening local social capital.
Ewa Sadkowska – Manager, National Orchestra of Polish Radio, previously with Stanislaw Wyspiański Dramatic Theatre, responsible for sales and distribution, audience development, commercial events, sales strategy.
Title of talk: A successful transformation from an industrial city to Unesco City of Music
Abstract: The influence of quality of place on people’s perspectives on culture; the need to develop audiences and to encourage participation in cultural events through the use of effective strategies and audience segmentation; turning an area known for coal mines and industry into the best tourist site in Katowice, through revitalization

Lesław Tetla: visual artist, head of Interdisciplinary Actions Studio, Associate Professor, Dean of Faculty of Art, Academy of Fine Arts in Katowice

Title of talk: Artists behind bars

Abstract: Dick Higgins created the term intermedia, defining it as the actions placed between art and life, between artistic means of expression and the media through which human existence articulates itself. This anthropocentric way of perceiving art is very important in the work of the Katowice Academy’s Interdisciplinary Actions Studio, which, in its actions outside the walls of the school or galleries, in public space, enters into direct relation with specific places and the problems of people living in them. One of the most important socially oriented projects is the cooperation with the prison in Zabrze. The aim of this work is stimulation through art. Direct involvement of inmates in art projects is intended to ease tensions and prevent acts of aggression, as well as encourage them to read books and watch films.