Alena Hlucháňová: When making animal figurines becomes your hobby

Barbora Kanávorová

Last year, Alena Hlucháňová of Bratislava was awarded the prestigious title of Master of Folk Art Production for making textile animal figurines. She has been producing them for ÚĽUV since 2003 when, encouraged by ÚĽUV’s designer Janka Menkynová, she re-launched her production of animal figurines. Today, she is an independent producer, following her own designs, cuts and ideas. “Until I really like my horse figurine, I have made a great number of figurines. If I am not happy with the outcome, I work further, looking for solutions. This may result, for example, in adjusting the cut so that it meets qualities and possibilities of chosen fabric,” explains Alena Hlucháňová. It is all written in her eyes: she loves what she does. In her free time, the skilful and creative Master works in bobbin lace, being active in the Okolok club of bobbin lace in Petržalka. Another area she has been captivated by is a technique of cuffs’ making. She is also active in the Vretienko club devoted to textile techniques, operating under the auspices of UĽUV’s Regional Centre of Crafts. She teaches Tambour needle embroidery. During a summer day camp, Vacation with Crafts, she raises awareness, among children, of various textile techniques.

Further articles in the magazine Craft, Art, Design 03/2017:

• Toys through the passage of time
• How the law perceives it
• Alena Hlucháňová: When making animal figurines becomes your hobby
• From the collections of the Museum of Puppet Cultures and Toys
• Bohuslav Šippich and Kyjatice toy
• Kyjatice phenomena
• Research into wooden toys
• Sixty tremendous years of šúpolienky (cornhusk dolls)
• Jaroslav Švihra: Accompanied by wood from early childhood
• Preservation research into dolls wearing folk costumes
• Wooden cubes or plastic jigsaws?
• What toys did our producers used to play with?
• Clay treasures from Heřman Landsfeld collection
• Toy as a souvenir
• Shifting boundaries of reality
• When game connects all players
• As Infinity came into being
• A family affair
• Slovak folk embroidery, edition Inspirations