An Interview with Daria Marmaluk-Hajioannou
Daria Marmaluk-Hajioannou is a globally acclaimed musician and songwriter, celebrated for her culturally rich and diverse music-earning over two dozen international awards. Alongside her musical journey, she has been creating pysanky since the age of twelve, inspired by the vibrant traditions of her Ukrainian and Slavic heritage.
“I hope you feel the magic of this meaningful folk art,” Daria says of her book, The Magic of Pysanky: A Ukrainian Egg Coloring Book. “As you explore these coloring pages, may you brighten the world with your own unique versions of these special eggs.”
What inspired you to start writing this book?
Although I’ve been a touring musician and educator for over forty years, I always found time in late winter and early spring to make Ukrainian eggs. It’s a beautiful, calming and mindful practice that I’ve done since my childhood. This book is my way of sharing this folk art with the world.
I first encountered pysanky when my family visited my Slavic grandparents in their little town and Ukrainian eggs were a huge part of every Easter celebration. My grandmother displayed her treasured heirloom eggs—some almost thirty years old—in a massive brandy snifter. For sme reason, I was the only grandchild that she allowed to touch them. I took them out carefully as she told me the story behind each egg. She explained who had made it for her, what happened that year, what the symbolism meant and I was hooked! I quickly realized that pysanky were not just an art form but a vehicle for culture keeping, a meaningful tradition and a time capsule of family history.
Describe how your dream book cover came together.
Ukrainian eggs are a type of folk art that varies from region to region, town to town and even artist to artist. I had not even thought about a book cover until all the interior page illustrations were completed. It took quite a while to create such a wide range of pysanky, and when it was complete I decided to hand-pick my favorite eggs to adorn the cover. I love that so many people have commented that the cover draws them in to open and explore the book!
If your book had a soundtrack, what are some songs that would be on it?
The soundtrack to this book? That’s easy. It would be a song known by all Ukrainian people called “Многая літа” / “God Grant You Many Years”. The song is a wish and a blessing for a happy and long life on this Earth. It beautifully echoes the concept that Ukrainian eggs were often given as symbols of wishes for health, happiness, prosperity, love and abundance.
What books are you reading (for research or comfort) as you continue the writing process?
Right now I am reading several books on this topic to deepen my understanding of the symbolism seen on pysanky. Many of these books are about Ukrainian folklore and mythology. Another book I am reading is called Eggs of Hope and it is the story of pysanky throughout history as a symbol of cultural identity, preservation, and hope, including stories of eggs created by Ukrainian women in German concentration camps as acts of resistance.
What other professions have you worked in? What’s something about you that your readers wouldn’t know?
I am a full-time musician and songwriter as well as an ethnomicologist. For me, I am drawn to cultural treasures, whether they are found in music or in the form of a beloved and meaningful folk art, like Ukrainian eggs. My readers may not know that I speak and sing in more than eight languages and that I spent several years of my youth in an indigenous culture in South America. I value and respect all cultures and feel honored I’ve been able to experience so many of them firsthand.
It’s a joy to share what I’ve learned with my readers.
What’s one thing you hope sticks with readers after they finish your book?
I hope that readers are charmed by the Ukrainian eggs they discover in my book, as well as the facts about how they are made and why they are so valued.
I also hope that readers appreciate that this book is interactive. It was created as a coloring book so readers can easily and instantly become part of this beautiful ancestral tradition. They can see things through their own eyes and create their own masterpieces, thereby allowing this ancient tradition to bloom, grow and thrive.
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