KarunaNews Story

Pavel Hajko never tires of painting the brightly-colored roosters that cover the walls of his home studio in Kovacica, a town in northern Serbia whose artists have become famous for their childlike renderings of traditional village life of the Slovak minority. Last year UNESCO recognized the Kovacica painters on its list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Pavel Babka runs a gallery showing the art, which he sees as key to preserving the traditions of the ethnic Slovaks who settled in the Vojvodina region more than two centuries ago. But as the community declines due to its aging population and migration to Slovakia, the art may come to be driven by tourist tastes rather than authenticity. Art historian Elenka Djuris hopes global recognition will spur renewed preservation efforts. “Unfortunately, it often takes someone from outside to show us the wealth we have, and then we realize that our culture is truly valuable and worthy of attention.”