The painting of eggs is an age old custom among Croatian families during the Easter holiday as they prepare to commemorate the resurrection of Christ. Eggs are included in blessed baskets and baked into traditional Easter breads. Often elaborately decorated with designs and symbols and dyed in colors that have special meanings (red stands for the love and passion of Christ, yellow symbolizes light) they represent the culture, heritage and faith of a people for renewal and hope.
So it only seemed natural when the Tourist Board of the Croatian county of Koprivnica-Krizevci initiated a project to create large (2.05m tall by 1.50m wide) painted eggs as an “Easter Egg from the Heart” to spread the joy of Easter to the world. Decorated by Croatian painters in the naïve style of Hlebine, the eggs are stylized depictions of rural country life. Thanks to the cooperation of the Croatian National Tourist Board, these “Easter Eggs from the Heart” decorate squares, galleries and exhibition spaces in New York, Bilbao, Pamplona, Budapest, Klagenfurt, Milan, Rome-Vatican ( as a gift to Pope Benedict XVI), Međugorje, Zagreb, Dubrovnik and many more locations throughout the world.
I took a picture of a Seeing and Savoring Italy traveler standing next to “un uovo dipinto di cuore”, displayed in the courtyard of Castello d’Estense in the northern Italian town of Ferrara . The dramatic size of the egg and the heartfelt message it conveyed made an statement of joy and friendship. As the eggs are made of polyester and painted with the highest quality weather resistant colors, the artist’s intent to represent the cultural heritage of the people of Croatia and their gift to the world will be longstanding.