The main motto of our story is the Traditional Ornament, which fascinated lovers of folk culture all around the world. This current topic is a place which brings inspiration closer to young producers, designers, and artists. The aim of the event “Get Ornamented!” with the subtitle The ornaments from the heart of Europe is to present a wide range of traditional patterns occurring throughout groups of material, which are typical for the Central European region. The Slovak organization “Centre for Folk Art Production”, whose main objective is to develop craft techniques within the heart of Europe, wishes to use this story to describe ornaments using items made of various materials and serving different practical or representative purposes. This exceptional event is Slovakia-wide, focusing on the preservation of immaterial cultural heritage but in the same time to be inspiration for the new generations of a designer, artist and the wide public who will make - or use the sustainable, slow design enriched via tradition. Through the activities, we will present also the European dimension - the manifold, rich world of folk art creation showing how the world of ornaments is strongly linked to the European art tradition, how individual features stand out and cover the traces of several historical styles. But the same time- the event will also point to the link with modern Europe via contemporary design because the inspirations from local ornaments in the work of local designers can be very interesting for whole European space. The event is enriched by the opening exhibition “Traditional Ornament”, which will take place in the ÚĽUV Gallery and ends in January 2020.

Stories of European Heritage 2019 Event – “Get Ornamented!” Traditional ornament from the heart of Europe Open days in the Regional Craft Centres / Slovakia Date: 19. 09. 2019 from 4 pm – 6 pm Opening of the exhibition “Traditional Ornament”, at Gallery ÚĽUV at 7 pm Duration of the exhibition: 20.09.2019 - 30.01.2020 Locations: Regional Craft Centre and Gallery ÚĽUV, Obchodná 64, 816 11 Bratislava Regional Craft Centre Banská Bystrica, Dolná 14, 974 01 Regional Craft Centre Košice, Mäsiarska 52, 040 01 The annual event “Open Days” means that all three regional centers of ÚĽUV - Bratislava, Banská Bystrica, and Košice open their gates in one day. The aim of the event is to present a wide range of traditional patterns occurring throughout groups of material, which are typical for the Central European region. The Slovak organisation “Centre for Folk Art Production”, whose main objective is to develop craft techniques within the heart of Europe, wishes to use this story to describe ornaments using items made of various materials and serving different practical or representative purposes. This exceptional event is Slovakia-wide, focusing on the preservation of immaterial cultural heritage. Through the activities of the prepared event, we will present the manifold, rich world of folk art creation. We will also be showing how the world of ornaments is linked to the European art tradition, how individual features stand out and cover the traces of several historical styles. For this reason, on September 19th, 2019, the three regional centers of ÚĽUV will open their doors, in Bratislava, Banská Bystrica and in Košice. As proof of the fact that the presentation of folk art production is very popular in Slovakia, there will be hundreds of visitors of all age ranges. The main motto of our story is the Traditional Ornament, which fascinated lovers of folk culture all around the world. This current topic is a place which brings inspiration closer to young producers, designers, and artists. The Centre for Folk Art Production, as a patron of the preservation and development of folk art, production and crafts are bringing to Slovakia an event which presents traditional folk production in an interactive form, with creative workshops for children and adults alike. The aim of the event is to develop traditions as a source of inspiration for future generations. Organizing this event, where the traditional ornament will have the final say, will open up an annual space for presenting and preserving cultural heritage with its individual regional differences and specific features. The event will attract people with its accompanying programme: creative workshops for children and adults, focusing on the traditional folk ornament, presenting traditional folk art production, specialist lectures on the topic of decoration/ symbol, a cultural programme – performances by folk groups, the opening of the exhibition “Traditional Ornament”. The Traditional Ornament Day will also be focused on promoting and presenting to the public the activities of the ÚĽUV Regional Craft Centres, as well as the many above-mentioned interactive accompanying programmes. The event will be held with the aim of raising the public’s awareness and interest in this institution’s specialised activities and popularising the protection of folk art production and traditional crafts by carrying out interactive activities aimed at the specialist and general public. The greatest attraction is usually the opportunity to try out for oneself work in a craft workshop, which will be focused this year on the creation of traditional ornaments in various groups of materials. Not only children but also adults, look for relaxation more and more often in the form of pottery, basket weaving or lace-making, which will also include the traditional ornament. ÚĽUV’s teachers and producers will patiently present their skills all day, and teach visitors the basics of their craft technique. There will be interactive games for children, specialised lectures, a folklore programme, and many other interesting features to attract lovers of traditional craft from all corners of Slovakia to the ÚĽUV regional centers. This year, the Traditional Ornament Day in Bratislava will be truly exceptional. On September 19th, the event will include the grand opening of the exhibition “Traditional Ornament”, which will take place in the ÚĽUV Gallery, thematically following on from the ÚĽUV publishing house’s new book “Ornament and Object: Decorative Tradition in Slovakia” written by the renowned ethnologist Oľga Danglová. The exhibition “Traditional Ornament” will present the variability of ornaments and patterns from the whole of Slovakia and show how they can currently be used. Through items made of several groups of materials, visitors will discover various geometrical, plant, zoomorphic and anthropomorphic motifs. As well as collection items from the ÚĽUV Museum of Folk Art Production, products by contemporary craftsmen will also be presented, who use the above-mentioned ornaments in their work.

The event contributes to the building of a positive image of Slovakia as a state that honors traditions and provides visitors from all around Europe in an attractive way. Through the activities, we will present the manifold, rich world of folk art creation showing how the world of ornaments is strongly linked to the European art tradition and on the same time point out the link with modern Europe via contemporary design inspired by local traditions.