Interlacing: Color and Patterns

At the exhibition on the occasion of the 50th Days of National Costumes and Clothing Heritage, we present an interweaving of Maleš’s colorful depictions of national costumes and rich patterns on Kamnik majolica.

Miha Maleš was a versatile artist who was interested in art in many ways. In his mature age, he also worked on the motif of national costumes in his lyrical artistic language and vivid colors. In the depictions of Macedonian, Bosnian, and also Slovenian national costumes, he proved to be an extremely accomplished colorist. On the monotypes, the color even prevails over his characteristic line.

Maleš’s vivid depictions of national costumes are complemented by selected Kamnik’s majolicas, which boast a tradition spanning more than a century. Even today, the most recognizable are those produced by the Svit ceramic factory from the beginning of the 1950s until the end of its existence in 2008. The majolica is over the years it has become, so to speak, a mythological object, closely related to the identity of the Slovenian nation. It is also sung in folk songs as a symbol of a good and happy society.