Relota is a self-taught artist, an Argentinian of Croatian extraction that relocated to Pula in 2016, where she now lives and works. She paints miniatures on glass in the naïve style, miniatures on canvas and wood, Easter eggs, fabricates Istra County heritage inspired souvenirs and other handicrafts inspired by Croatian heritage. Her work is on exhibit in Pula through to the end of January.
The chapter hall of the St Francis monastery in Pula was the venue for an exhibition of miniature naïve paintings on glass by self-taught painter Jadranka Relota, an Argentinian of Croatian descent. The exhibition, organised by the Pula branch office of the Croatian Heritage Foundation, was staged in late 2021 for the Christmas holidays and features Croatian Christmas themes, including the nativity scene and folk customs. The exhibition showcases some thirty works on glass with nativity scenes, and Advent and Christmas motifs, and runs through to the end of January.
The nativity scene miniatures touch on many of Croatia’s regions (Istra County, the islands of Susak, Krk and Pag, the Lika, Dalmatia, Podravina and Međimurje regions), and regions outside the country that are historically home to Croatians or to the descendants of immigrant Croatians (Vojvodina, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Argentina). Along with nativity scenes, the paintings also feature Advent and Christmas customs (the blessing of houses and families, carolling). The nativity scenes feature motifs typical of the various settlements, counties and regions, including the drystone kažun shepherd’s huts of Istra County, the lace of Pag island, the Alka ring-tilting contest of Sinj, the Šestina-pattern umbrellas, with the figures of Mary and Joseph clothed in the traditional folk attire of these regions, thus presenting the wealth and diversity of our cultural heritage and regions.
Jadranka Relota is a self-taught artist, an Argentinian of Croatian extraction that relocated to the Croatian coastal city of Pula in 2016, where she now lives and works. She paints miniatures on glass in the naïve style, miniatures on canvas and wood, Easter eggs, fabricates Istra County heritage inspired souvenirs and other handicrafts inspired by Croatian heritage. She has worked for many years studying and reaffirming Croatian ethnographic heritage. Mrs Relota has staged multiple workshops on creating Easter eggs and painting on glass both in her native Argentina and in Croatia.
By: Barbara Buršić