The Macedonian folk embroidery an opulent cultural
heritage and significant national artistic creation
has many years of tradition. The principal bearer of
the art of embroidery is the village woman closely
related to the old traditions of her environment,
for years carried on the knowledge and experience
from one generation to another which is actually
characteristic for the entire national culture. The
folk embroidery of Macedonia until recently existed
as a traditional embellishment primarily of the
village costumes where the esthetic expression and
artistic expression of the artist/creator through
ornaments, technique and color found their most
adequate and characteristic manner of expression. On
the other hand it managed to sustain as a specific
mark of the national culture which carries the sign
of ancient cultural traditions.
The art of
embroidery of the Macedonian people, an expression
of the collective esthetic and psychological
dispositions of a specific community grew and
evolved under specific socio-economic condition and
through its centuries of evolution and underwent
significant transformations and various cultural
influences. But, through the continual process of
upholding old traditions, besides the various
cultural influences the Macedonian national
embroidery, formed into a specific ethnically
divergent art of embroidery.
The traditional
Macedonian national embroidery as a significant
product of the national culture of the Macedonian
people in the past sustained in conditions of
patriotic village essence when the mere division of
the work responsibilities contributed to the exert
great efforts of the woman in the home textile
production. But, with the transformations in the
political and socio-economic conditions at the
beginning of the 20th century great
changes occurred in the Macedonian costumes as well
and then the ancient opulent decoration of these
costumes began to fade. The Macedonian population
particularly being earning money in different
countries, began to abandon their old costumes and
ornamentation and turned towards easier and
contemporary clothing solutions (Prespa, Kostur, the
Upper Villages of Bitola, the Tsapari Plain,
Zheleznik, Kichevia).
To the
transformation in the Folk Costumes contributed the
komiti actions in the period before the Ilinden
Rising, which resulted in restrictions in the use of
several expensive parts of the costume, restrictions
that were penalized if not respected. The role of
the komiti organizations in the villages in order
create more rational expenses for the Macedonian
population made severs reductions to the embroidered
decorations. That way fewer embroidered shirts were
worn whereas in some villages under their influence
created the special embroidery so-called komitskoto.
Today in the
process of modernizing our villages the old
embroidery traditions are being abandoned. Only the
collected and preserved exemplars of the Macedonian
folk embroidery remain as evidence of an ancient
artistic tradition. It is rare to have such a rich
cultural heritage of the Macedonian people where the
knowledge of many generations is sublimed into great
esthetic values and is an endless resource of
artistic inspiration for contemporary art.
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