Dr. Ihor Kunasz, Ukrainian Pysanky Artist. 2025
Dr. Ihor Kunasz, born in France to a Ukrainian mother, has carried forward the ancient tradition of pysanky – eggs decorated with beeswax and dye (batik) He learned by candlelight from his mother and has shared this art for decades, teaching family, community members, and now his apprentice, Rebecca Lennon, is quickly becoming an artist herself. In Tucson, Ihor’s work has become a symbol of resilience and continuity, connecting Ukrainian heritage with new generations alongside apprentice Rebecca Lennon.
~
Dr. Ihor Kunasz grew up surrounded by Ukrainian language, traditions, and stories. His mother, from western Ukraine, carried with her the Boyko style of pysanky – eggs decorated with beeswax and dye – and passed it on to him by candlelight. “I learned by watching her work,” Ihor recalls, remembering how she used a simple pin to apply beeswax in delicate lines and symbols.
Pysanky, meaning “to write” in Ukrainian, are decorated eggs created through a wax-resist dyeing process. This tradition stretches back more than a thousand years and was once practiced by women during Holy Week, often late at night, with only the glow of a candle. Eggs were never boiled, as they symbolized life and miracle, and working on raw eggs preserved their sacred meaning. Families brought baskets of pysanky to church to be blessed, a ritual that continues today in Ukrainian American communities.
“Pysanky is more than decoration,” he says. “It carries cultural memory, spirituality, and personal expression and identity,” he says. In times of upheaval, the eggs become symbols of resilience and continuity, connecting past and future.
After moving to the United States in 1958, Ihor pursued geology and earned a Ph.D. from Penn State. Even while studying maps and minerals, he continued to make pysanky. His first dozen eggs sold quickly, affirming the deep appeal of this tradition. Over the years, he taught his children and grandchildren, and later began sharing his work publicly at the annual Tucson Meet Yourself Festival. His background in mapping shaped his approach: his designs lean toward precise, geometric patterns rather than floral motifs.
The process remains rooted in tradition. Melted beeswax is applied with a stylus or pin, layer by layer, as the egg is dipped from light to dark dyes. Once the wax is removed, the multicolored design is revealed. Dyes were traditionally made from plants, such as onion skins for yellow, beet juice for red, and each color carried its own significance.Though synthetic dyes are now common, the symbols and meanings endure.
Since moving to Tucson in 2000, Ihor has been part of the Ukrainian church and cultural community. He has taught pysanky at festivals, workshops, and church events, helping to keep the practice alive in Southern Arizona. At one time, three master pysanky artists lived in Tucson; their passing has left him with the responsibility to carry the tradition forward.
Today, Ihor continues to mentor others, including his apprentice Rebecca Lennon, who is advancing her own pysanky work under his guidance. With new Ukrainian families resettling in Tucson, the eggs have taken on renewed meaning as symbols of belonging and hope. Through his teaching and dedication, Ihor ensures that pysanky remains a living tradition—one that speaks of miracle, memory, and resilience across generations.
~
Learn more about Ihor in this October 2022 interview in BorderLore:
“‘Once you work on an egg, you forget the world’: Ihor Kunasz on pysanky, tradition, and the Ukrainian diaspora.”