Glencairn Museum News | Number 10, 2020
A portion of the Advent calendar page for this year’s World Nativities exhibition.
Visitors to Glencairn’s website, and those who follow our social media, may click on the Nativity that appears each day in our World Nativities Advent calendar to see closeup photos, learn about its history, imagery, and the artist who made it, and explore a “zoomable” version of the photo on Glencairn’s Google Arts & Culture page. Original settings for many of the Nativities have been created by Bryn Athyn artist Kathleen Glenn Pitcairn. Also available on the website is Do You See What I See: Imagery in Nativity Scenes, our online resource about the history and iconography of the Nativity tradition. Below are some photos and information from the first nine days of Nativities in Glencairn’s World Nativities 2020 Advent calendar.
DECEMBER 1: SPANISH NATIVITY
Made by Belenes Puig S.L., Barcelona, Spain, from clay, fabric, and metal. 2014. More here.
In 1933 in Spain, Jose Puig Llobera established Belenes Puig S.L., a family-owned company famous for its Nativity figures (belenes, the Spanish word for Bethlehem, can also refer to a Nativity scene). The company is still run by the family, with the third generation operating the business. The figures are handcrafted from clay molds, painted, and dressed with stiffened fabrics.
These Puig Nativity figures have been influenced by an elaborate Nativity scene created by Francisco Salzillo between 1776 and 1783 for the Murcian nobleman Jesualdo Riquelme y Fontes. Salzillo was a noted Baroque sculptor of religious figures in polychromed wood. His Nativity includes hundreds of pieces and is located in Murcia, Spain, in the museum that bears his name: Museo Salzillo.
DECEMBER 2: ART DECO “STAR NATIVITY”
Emil Thomann began learning his craft in the School for Woodcarving (Schule für Holzbildhauerei) in Brienz, Switzerland, where he designed his first Nativity. He continued his training in Cologne, Germany, where his work was influenced by the geometric style of the Art Deco movement. He returned to Brienz in 1934 to work in the woodcarving business founded by his father (who was also named Emil Thomann). The younger Thomann designed this triangular “Star Nativity” (Sternkrippe) in 1937, but he continued reproducing the style until at least the 1980s.
The Thomann workshop in Brienz survived the difficult years of the Great Depression thanks largely to exports to the USA—including an order for St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City for a Nativity with figures measuring three feet tall. Father and son worked together in the family business until the elder Thomann’s death in 1964. The younger Thomann continued working long beyond retirement age and lived to be more than 100 years old.
DECEMBER 3: NATIVITY WITH AFRICAN ANIMALS
Carved by Van Nyasulu, Nkhata-Bay, Republic of Malawi, from Afrormosia (African teak).
2017. More here.
Malawi is a landlocked country in southeastern Africa. Approximately three-fourths of the population identify as Christian. Artist Van Nyasulu, from Nkhata-Bay, was taught how to carve by his father, Symon Nyasulu, beginning at the age of six. Van trained under Symon until he was fourteen, when his father passed away and he began carving full-time on his own. This Nativity, carved from Afrormosia wood (African teak), depicts the Holy Family beneath a hut. Instead of the ox and donkey familiar from European Nativity scenes, the family is surrounded by animals native to Malawi: an African buffalo, a leopard, a lion, a giraffe, an elephant, and a rhinoceros.
DECEMBER 4: JEMEZ PUEBLO INDIAN NATIVITY
Made by Yolanda Toya Toledo, Jemez Pueblo, New Mexico, USA, from clay and natural pigments. (No date.) More here.
In 1540, when the Spanish first arrived in the American Southwest, there were more than 100 pueblos (villages) in the Rio Grande Valley. Today there are 19 Pueblos in New Mexico, all of which are linked by common history, culture, and traditions. European influence has brought many changes to the Pueblo Indian way of life, with most of the residents accepting Christianity as an addition to their own pre-Christian traditions. Christmas is celebrated each year at the Jemez Pueblo with traditional songs, dances, and food, and a home hosts a live Nativity scene for two weeks.
The Pueblo Indian population first became familiar with Nativities in their local mission churches (usually imports in the Italian style). It was not until the late 1950s that Pueblo residents began making their own. Today a number of Pueblo Indian artists make Nativities, along with other works such as the famous ceramic storyteller figures. Indian culture is rich with myths and stories, which are used to convey traditions and values. Both the storyteller figures and the Nativity figures have an open mouth in order to “let the stories out.”
Yolanda Toya Toledo specializes in making storytellers, Nativities, angels, and Christmas ornaments. She and her seven sisters are continuing the legacy of their mother, the renowned Jemez Pueblo potter Mary Ellen Toya, and their grandmother, Carrie Loretto of Laguna Pueblo. Using traditional Pueblo methods, Yolanda digs her clay on the Jemez Reservation, uses natural pigments, and fires her pottery outdoors.
DECEMBER 5: NATIVITY MADE FROM BANANA LEAVES
Made in Venezuela from banana leaves, wood, slate, gold thread, and other natural materials. 1983. More here.
A Venezuelan artist created this Nativity from banana leaves and other natural materials. The leaves were soaked to make them pliable enough to shape, and a clear shellac was added once they were dry. The faces have been delicately painted, and gold-colored thread has been used to decorate some of the figures.
It is common for families in Venezuela to have a nacimiento (Nativity scene) in their home during the Christmas season. Sometimes the scene is very detailed, with elaborate landscaping. The traditional gift giver is the Baby Jesus, who leaves presents for the children on Christmas Eve. Most families attend Misa de Gallo (a Catholic midnight Mass) that evening, and then go home for a special meal. Hallacas, a traditional Christmas food, are made with corn meal, a filling of beef, chicken, pork, olives, vegetables, and spices—all wrapped in banana leaves and steamed.
DECEMBER 6: DANISH NATIVITY
Made by Højholm Design, Fredericia, Denmark, from Danish beech and oak. 2014. More here.
This Nativity, designed by Per Henning Højholm, was made in a distinctively Danish, mid-century modern style. The set includes the Holy Family, a shepherd and shepherdess, two sheep, and three brightly painted wise men. The wooden shapes are simple, and the painted designs are geometric. The woods used are Danish beech and oak.
Højholm Design was founded by Per Henning Højholm in 1957. The first painted wooden figure he designed was a small angel he gave to family and friends as a Christmas gift. The angel’s painted decoration was inspired by old frescoes. Højholm was studying medicine at the time but decided to pursue his love of wooden crafts instead, moving his family to the town of Bogense on the island of Funen. The wood was turned in Bogense, and the painting of the figures was done by about 20 women working from their homes.
Højholm died in 1974, and today the company he founded is owned by his daughter, Ellen Kirstine Højholm. Ellen and her husband, Eric, now paint all of the figures, so that each one is unique.
DECEMBER 7: THE ADORATION OF THE SHEPHERDS
Made by Nancy Schnarr-Bruell, Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, from wood, wool, fabric, leather. 2018. More here.
Nancy Schnarr-Bruell, an artist from Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, created this three-dimensional version of an illustration in The Christ Child, a 1931 children’s book by Maud and Miska Petersham. The Petershams, a husband-and-wife artist team, were well known in the first half of the 20th century as illustrators and authors of children’s literature. Before illustrating The Christ Child, the Petershams traveled together for three months in Palestine, researching the clothing and customs of the Holy Land.
Nancy Schnarr-Bruell, from Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, poses with “Belsnickel” (aka Patrick Donmoyer, director of the Pennsylvania German Cultural Heritage Center) and “Santa Jr.” (aka Jim Morrison, founder/curator of the National Christmas Center). Santa Jr. is holding a Belsnickel doll crafted by Schnarr-Bruell. Photo taken in Glencairn’s Great Hall in 2016.
The Petershams’ books were well regarded by Raymond and Mildred Pitcairn; Mildred gave copies of The Christ Child to over 100 families and friends in the year 1949 alone. The Pitcairns’ enthusiasm for the book was so great that in the late 1930s they commissioned artist Frank Snyder to paint a life-size interpretation of the illustration of the Adoration of the Shepherds for Glencairn, their newly-completed home in Bryn Athyn.
The three-dimensional version of the Petershams’ illustration was handcarved and sewn by Nancy Schnarr-Bruell; the backdrop was created by her husband, John Bruell. According to Nancy,
“I love making Nativities because I love making images of the Lord. I think the Petershams in the The Christ Child book, especially in their illustration of the Adoration of the Shepherds, were able to capture a sphere of innocence that we should all strive for when we come before the Lord. I grew up with many of the Petersham books, and The Christ Child was a favorite part of my childhood Christmas tradition. Ever since I was little I’ve always wanted to ‘step inside’ the scene, and be there at the manger with the shepherds. So . . . I decided to make a three-dimensional version. I hope it will help others to experience what I’ve been experiencing in my own imagination for many years.”
DECEMBER 8: NATIVITY FROM GUATEMALA
Carved by Rodrigo Canil, Chichicastenango, Guatemala. 2016. More here.
Rodrigo Canil (left) in his workshop.
Rodrigo Canil’s father, who was a woodcarver, died when Rodrigo was a young boy. He began making his own carvings at the age of 15. He has six brothers, two sisters, and a three-year-old son. Rodrigo supports his family with his carvings, which he sells in the marketplace in Chichicastenango. His workshop has expanded over time, and he now manages 14 young artists.
Guatemala has a rich and diverse culture, which includes both Mayan and Spanish influences. Mayan culture is known for its brilliantly dyed textiles, which are woven into capes, shirts and dresses. The painted floral designs of this Nativity are most likely inspired by Guatemalan clothing.
The Christ Child lies on a manger in the shape of a rooster, and seems to be holding a toy in the shape of a chicken. This may be a symbolic reference to the Misa del Gallo (Mass of the Rooster), a Midnight Mass that Guatemalans celebrate on Christmas Eve. According to tradition, on the night the baby Jesus was born, a rooster crowed at midnight.
DECEMBER 9: SLOVAK CORN-HUSK NATIVITY
Made by Peter Palka, Bratislava, Slovak Republic, from corn husk and wood. 2009. More here.
Slovak folk artists use corn husks to make Christmas and Easter scenes, as well as scenes representing the traditional way of life in rural Slovak villages. In 1994 Peter Palka designed a Nativity, similar to this one, which won first prize at the International Crèche Festival in Bellingham, Washington. The United States Ambassador to the Slovak Republic awarded the prize to Palka in a ceremony held at the parliament building in Bratislava, the capital city. Palka’s Nativity also appeared on the Slovak Republic’s 1995 Christmas stamp.
To see the rest of the artwork in World Nativities, check our 2020 Advent calendar daily, or follow us on social media. For a full list of all of Glencairn’s 2020 Christmas offerings, click here.
(CEG)
A complete archive of past issues of Glencairn Museum News is available online here.