In the 20th century handmade blueprint garments began to be replaced by clothes mass produced in textile factories. Nevertheless, about twenty rural blueprint workshops were still active in Slovakia as late as the mid-20th century. The wearing of traditional clothing was still alive in a number of regions and since the blueprint craftspeople adapted the products they made to the particular target group, they were able to survive despite their higher prices.
It was the state ban on the operation of freelance businesses in the 1950’s that sped up the demise of the blueprint craft in its natural environment. On the other hand, through production cooperatives, such as the Kroj (“Folk Costume”), founded in 1948 by the Centre for Folk Art Production (ÚĽUV) in Petržalka, Bratislava, blueprint cloth began to be made to meet the more contemporary requirements of the period and from its rural roots it spread into municipal households in the form of household accessories.
The traditional blueprint designs were freshened up by original ideas from contemporary artists. Those who worked in ÚĽUV particularly excelled as they were able to draw on research into the traditional forms. The 1970’s represented a breakthrough for contemporary blueprint when the ÚĽUV began to cooperate with Stanislav Trnka, the descendant of a famous family of blueprinters from Púchov. This cooperation proved to be mutually enriching – for the producer, as he could carry on his craft activity undisturbed, and for the ÚĽUV who gained a master who was pushing artists forward thanks to his rich experience. Stanislav Trnka produced as much as 20,000 metres of blueprint cloth per year.
After 1989 the market opened up thanks to a change in economic conditions. Alongside the ÚĽUV, which celebrates its 75th birthday this year, contemporary producers can also draw support from the addition of Slovak blueprint into the prestigious UNESCO list of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2018.
Tomáš Mikolaj
The Centre for Folk Art Production
