Celebrating Cambodian and Slovak Cultural Traditions


By Paulette Beete
an oxblood red large covered ceramic vessel
A storage pot by master Cambodian ceramicist and 2015 NEA National Heritage Fellow Yary Livan. Photo by Tom Pich
We're less than a month away from the 2015 NEA National Heritage Fellowships awards ceremony and concert! Did you know you can watch two ways? Join us live in Washington, DC (click here for free tickets) or watch the livestream on arts.gov. Today on our Pinterest page we're highlighting two of the master artists we're celebrating at this year's events. Yary Livan is a Cambodian ceramicist whose work includes not only the masterful crafting of Khmer ceramics but a committment to teaching, advocacy, and preservation of Cambodian artistic cultural heritage. Sidonka Wadina is a Slovak straw artist and egg decorator who learned straw painting and egg decorating from her grandmother. You can learn more about Livan, Wadina, and the other 2015 NEA National Heritage Fellowships here. You can visit our Pinterest page to see artwork by both Wadina and Livan. Here's a sneak peek of what you'll find.
several multicolored eggs decorated in the traditional Slovak style
Goddess Motif on Goose Eggs © 2000. Straw marquetry goddess figures on large goose eggs – Hana Region, Slovakia. Goddesses with arms in orant positions, some recognizable, some "hidden." Photo by Sidney J. Lee.
An older Cambodian man in glasses is carving a small ceramic alligator figurine
Yary Livan at work on a piece. Photo by Adrien Bisson.
a braided straw artwork with a spheroid shape up town and straw tassels
Slovakian Marriage Piece © 2003, W 6" x L 11". A fertility piece depicting male and female symbols in union; rick-rack plait (outside edge) to represent the difficulties encountered in marriage, a flower, to symbolize the blossoming of the relationship and hope for the future. Photo by Sidney J. Lee