Arts Lab 3.0: Fiona O'Neill - Easter Eggs

When I picture Easter eggs, I think of the shiny tinfoil hiding a sweet treat underneath. I can see them piled high in supermarkets on special offer, signalling that it's almost the one time of year it's acceptable to have chocolate for breakfast. In Romania, Easter eggs are something totally different. At the seventh annual Folcloristica I had the pleasure of meeting some traditional egg painters.

Despite the long and labor intensive process, children queued up to paint an egg of their own or simply get a better look at these miniature works of art. The patterns and motifs were a mixture of the natural and the religious, and as with most other Romanian crafts vary from region to region.

The process of painting the egg is similar to batik, using wax to protect certain areas from the dye to create patterns. Everything has to be done with the lightest touch, so that you don’t shatter your egg. A slow and gentle affair, the whole procedure is nothing short of meditative.

by Fiona O'Neill.

Fiona is volunteering within Arts Lab 3.0, a project funded by European Solidarity Corps, with the support of European Union.