UNITED BUDDY BEARS SHOW - Tierpark Berlin 2020

Adela Melišeková Dojčanová (*1978) is a member of numerous societies of fine artists. Her main area of interest is oil painting, glass painting and silk painting. She makes her artwork more valuable by using Swarovski crystals to touch up already finished pieces.

She studied under the guidance of many important Slovak artists at the university. She uses unique technique and special high-quality colors for her silk pieces. She has won numerous awards in regional and national competitions, and her artwork can also be found in private collection.

Adela is a professional guarantor for international and national school art projects (Tatrín – The Ornamental Map of Slovakia and Superclass). She runs her studio for children and youth where she teaches children fine art techniques and provides art therapy for children and adults, and lectures at the university. She devoted herself to charity  –  her paintings are auctioned for the Children's Cardiac Center in Bratislava, the Asylum House for battered women with children and for the organization Srdce ženy, which helps people affected by Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease and senior citizens in need.

Slovakia was and still is an exceptional land for its live culture: music, dance, folk costumes, and ornaments. I think if a bear should represent Slovakia and Slovak people – joy, hard work, patience, selflessness, and integrity – the bear must carry a Slovak ornament.
Slovaks used ornaments with floral and animal design to adorn folk costumes, ovens, and walls around doors and windows. Slovaks were always closely bound up with nature. I chose a large-scale painting on an antique oven to be the ornament on the bear. It has a mythological function: to protect the nature. The ornament was painted on an oven – the heart of the family in the dwelling. The family used to say prayers, heal, and rejoice in front of the furnace chamber where they also used to gather with neighbors and friends. Ornaments have accompanied Slovak family since its birth. The ornament decorating the bear is basically the Slovak family’s prayer. It depicts a spiral connected with a stem as a symbol of the variety of life and balanced male and female energy flow. The ornaments are reversed paintings for they should make an integral and balanced impression. The round shape in space creates a good atmosphere. The ornaments were connected and overlap as a symbol of a healthy family and its constant growth and development. The element of harmony is the two-leaf clover drawing the energy into the house. The circle ornaments served to draw the good energy into the house and leave the bad energy out. The floral design is a celebration of nature and life. The bear has black background as the fertile Slovak land. The red represents the color of blood and cohesion, the green stands for the nature and birth of life, and the blue color depicts the faith in God and hope.
This bear carries a piece of Slovak heart. He shows the Slovak soul, its devotion to the nature and love of humanity.

PaedDr. Adela Melišeková Dojčanová