When Tradition Meets the Unconventional: Pasta and Slovak Folk Art - „The Bride from Čičmany“
- Lubka's Pasta Art
- Feb 7
- 4 min read
Pasta and Slovak folk art – an absolutely captivating inspiration that stayed in my mind after listening to the song „Slovensko moje, otčina moja“ (Slovakia, My Homeland) by the band „Hrdza“. It is truly a beautiful song, resembling a prayer about love for one’s homeland, ancestors, and the stunning land of Slovakia.
With an open heart and a soul touched by its beauty, I embraced this delightful idea, set it aside, and let it mature within me as my next challenge – to show the world at least one of the many beauties Slovakia holds, through pasta.
A challenging task that simply required waiting for a vision that would resonate with me. And after about a year, it arrived. It caught me by surprise during a random glance at pasta heart shapes, where I suddenly saw embroidery. So seemingly simple, beautiful, and amazing. I was thrilled! After all, what better reflects the origins, customs, and traditions of Slovakia than folk embroidery – the most widespread expression of folk art in Slovakia – depicted through tiny pasta hearts?
My initial vision led me to cross-stitch embroidery, the oldest and most widespread technique in folk embroidery. I based my idea on the notion that with the heart-shaped pasta (essentially triangles), I could work with them similarly to squares turned into diamonds.
Exploring the history of folk embroidery, its various techniques, motifs, and regional variations across Slovakia eventually led me to the truly picturesque Slovak village of Čičmany, to its unique ornaments, and to Čičmany embroidery. Suddenly, I realized that I had found exactly what I had been searching for all along. The geometrically structured patterns, derived from a rich base of elements and motifs arranged into bands, the vibrant colors, and the almost technical precision that define Čičmany embroidery became the perfect foundation—not only for the authenticity of pasta embroidery.
Through countless photographs, I examined not only the various color variations of the embroideries adorning the local folk costumes but also the compositions of key elements and motifs. It became clear to me that despite all my efforts to replicate specific embroideries, I would have to create my own pasta-based composition. The size of the pasta hearts and the way they had to be arranged simply wouldn’t allow me to depict every detail of the original patterns. This required a great deal of imagination, and for the first time in my entire pasta art journey, I had to rely on trial arrangements, counting the pasta pieces, and painting them on a test board to ensure my vision was as realistic as possible.
The final pasta composition of the Čičmany embroidery on the chest lid was inspired by a specific local folk costume embroidery. However, due to the size of the pasta hearts, I replaced the „veľké riečice“ (large river motif) with the „sŕcko“ (heart motif). The pasta composition on the sides of the chest was then derived from the main pattern, where I replaced the central „baraňie roški“ (ram’s horns motif) to maintain the proportions of the chest. For the color selection, I relied on historical records stating that until the early 20th century, Čičmany embroidery was characterized by both subtle and vibrant colors, primarily in natural and yellow tones, contrasted with red. The interior of the chest was originally meant to be decorated with linen fabric, symbolizing the traditional material used by embroiderers. Unfortunately, I was unable to source linen, so I ultimately chose cotton, which most closely resembled it in texture and color.
The idea of creating this chest - and ultimately naming it „The Bride from Čičmany“ - came from reading about historical living conditions in Čičmany, particularly the so-called „veľkorodiny“ (extended families) that lived together in a single household. I was fascinated by the way young families slept in dark, unheated storage rooms in the upper part of the multi-story houses, with only a single bed and a painted chest, where the bride kept her personal belongings.
The work on „The Bride from Čičmany“ was literally done „on the go“ because not everything could be perfectly planned and calculated, as one might assume at first glance. From a technical perspective, creating a seamless embroidery effect across the entire chest - including the locking mechanism, hinges, and the entire back (where the lid opening posed a challenge) - led to a unique solution. Instead of attaching the closing system and hinges to the wooden base as usual, I placed them directly onto the pasta layer. I painted the chest in a meticulous heart-by-heart style, using colors I mixed myself from spray paints and old nail polishes, carefully matching the shades to historical photographs to achieve the right tones.
The atmosphere I had absorbed from photographs, Čičmany folk songs, and historical film footage I managed to find inspired me to experience it firsthand and bring „The Bride from Čičmany“ to life through photography as well. And so, pasta led me to the picturesque village of Čičmany - a breathtaking place where the beauty and uniqueness of its embroidery can still be seen and felt today, even through the local architecture. The ornately decorated wooden houses and the entire decorative aesthetic of the village stem from the rich tradition of Čičmany embroidery.
The beauty of the surrounding nature and the charm of the painted „gingerbread cottages“ brought a sense of peace to my soul and reassured me that I had made the right choice. I hardly need to mention how my heart rejoiced when I had the opportunity to hold an authentic Čičmany embroidery in my hands. Naturally, it had to be included in the photographs, just like the ornately decorated Čičmany wooden house.
„Slovakia, my homeland, you are as beautiful as paradise.“ These beautiful lyrics from the song played once again - this time coming from a radio in a small local shop, just after the photoshoot. And they are the perfect words to close this incredible pasta story, just as they were the ones that started it...
