Revelations: Elda Piščanec and the Revival of Tradition

Christmastide is a very popular period of the year, bringing light and mystery to the time when nature closes in on itself and the weather is usually gloomy and bleak. This is the time when the nativity scene – the Christmas scene of Jesus’ birth – is arranged whose deep roots reach into the 13th century. In 1223, Saint Francis of Assisi organized the first live reenactment of the nativity scene in the cave near Greccio (Lazio, Italy). This symbolic act was meant to direct the believers again to the true meaning of the holiday and it gradually became tradition and an indispensable component of Christmas celebrations. Every country and region developed its own particularities in the manufacture of the nativity scene, which contributed to the wealth of styles and interpretations of the pastoral experience.

In Slovenia, the earliest preserved nativity scene motifs belong to wall paintings in the churches. The first figurines are said to have been set up in Gornji Grad, followed in 1644 by the Jesuits in the Ljubljana Church of St James, where the statues were displayed that were one and a half metre tall and represented a succession of scenes of Christmas mysteries, from Jesus’ birth to the arrival of the Magi.

Over the centuries, the nativity scene has undergone numerous transformations and has been adapted to social and cultural changes. From the early live enactments it developed into a static scene, made of ever more elaborate and precious materials. The nativity scene figurines have their own history and memories that are transferred from generation to generation. A belief persists in our consciousness that these are figurines of smaller size whether set up in a sacred or domestic environment.

Sacred art of the artist Elda Piščanec (1897–1967) reveals insight into medieval art imbued with mysticism which attracted her and whose elements she often included in her own religious art. She wrote in her diary that her wish was to specialize in the manufacture of nativity scene figures and those of the Way of the Cross. In the autumn months of 1944, she began fashioning nativity scene figures for the Church of St Stephen at Štepanja vas in Ljubljana. In the sense of her being engrossed in the spiritual world, she relied on the ancient tradition and designed monumental figures which stylistically combine elements of folk art and the expression of past art styles. She prepared the entire set design for the staging of the events. She used different materials in her creations, such as wood, veneer, jute, various textiles, plaster, cement, bricks, roofing tiles, small stones, nails, various glues, sewing cotton, coloured glass, and paints. 

Only the central group of the figures have survived until today, and they have been restored several times. The artist formed them by way of models into which she poured plaster. She then further worked the figures and polychromed them. With their naïve image they bestow an expressive experience on us and testify about the art creativity of Elda Piščanec.