Norg, Netherlands. 2022
Design Proposal, preselected for the Folly Art Norg Festival in Norg (NL).
Project Author: Ewa Ziemiecka
"Finding Baba Yaga" is a project that seeks to reestablish one’s relationship with the land through exploring the mystical figure of Baba Yaga in Slavic folklore. Although the etymological meaning of the name “Baba Yaga” has undergone considerable modification over the centuries, it is now widely believed to refer to an old woman, possibly a witch, inhabiting a small elevated house on chicken legs in the forest. However, some scholars, such as Zygmunt Krzak, argue that Baba Yaga is a distorted portrait of an ancient Slavic goddess that was put forward to suppress the cult of a matriarchal figure.
Baba Yaga appears in agrarian folklore as a protector of crops and the one who ensures or withholds fertility and harvest. She was believed to dwell between the fields and the forest, or between life and death. One could say that this mystical figure was the very bridging element between culture and nature, ensuring balance between the two.
Slavic folklore is full of myths and beliefs that are closely related to the natural, divine, spiritual, and communal aspects of human existence. These beliefs have gradually been eliminated from modern ways of living, resulting in a disconnection from the natural world and its spiritual significance.
However, it is worth noting that in premodern times, harvest celebrations were not just about satisfying basic human necessities, such as nutrition. They were also about worshiping the earth and its gods, experiencing the mystical moment of gratitude for the crops harvested, and thanking the gods for bringing fertility and prosperity to the land. This spiritual character of pre-modern communities was more than just a religion; it was an organization of human activities aimed at maintaining balance between nature and human impact on the earth.
In this sense, the figure of Baba Yaga represents an important connection to our past, our land, and our spirituality. By exploring the mythology and folklore surrounding Baba Yaga, we can begin to understand our relationship with the land and its spiritual significance. As noted by Marina Warner, “folk tales are a way of connecting to the past, and they can help us to forge a more meaningful and sustainable relationship with the natural world” (Warner, 2017, p. 4).
Folly “Finding Baba Yaga” serves as an important reminder of our relationship with the land and the significance of folklore and mythology in connecting us to our past and our spiritual-ity.
The act of building the folly or in other words Baba Yaga’s house can be seen as a means of re-establishing a connection with nature and the divine, and evoke a mystical experience that is reminiscent of an act of worship or gratitude towards the earth’s personification. This expe-rience is not limited to the act of construction itself, but extends to the act of passing through the pavilion. The pavilion can be seen as a threshold, a liminal space between the forest and the field, life and death. As such, it offers a unique opportunity to experience a moment of transition and transformation, a moment where one can reconnect with the natural world and with oneself. In this way, the folly of Baba Yaga’s house can be seen as a powerful symbol of the human desire to reconnect with the earth and to rediscover the mystical and spiritual dimen-sions of existence.
