Slovakia: Look from the Bridge

Nugget (2016) by EVA PLOCZEKOVA

oday, Medzilaborce is the location of the Andy War- hol Museum of Modern Art, which opened in 1991 and con- tains many original works by Andy Warhol and his brother Paul and nephew James. It is the only official museum out- side the United States; an artistic and cultural honour for the Slovak Republic, one of the youngest nations in Europe, founded in 1993 following its separation from the Czech Republic (with which it had constituted Czechoslovakia). In reality, the process of independence has far more ancient roots: after nearly 900 years of Magyar domination, during the nineteenth century the cultural revival of the coun- try began, driven mainly by the creation of a Slovak literary language, which over the years led to the creation of the State we know today, composed of eight autonomous regions.

Little boy (2017) by IVAN CHAPČAK

The Slovak Republic, which takes its name from the western Slavic populations who settled here permanently in the sixth century, joined the European Union in 2004, the Schengen area in 2007 and, complying with the Maastricht criteria in 2008, on 1st January of the following year it joined the euro zone, ahead of the Czech Republic. This dependability has made Slovakia a valuable part- ner for Brussels in its process of enlargement in the Balkans and in mediating with the Russian Federation, to some extent on account of the friendly political and trade links that bind the two countries. Russia remains a crucial energy partner, as it supplies almost all of Slovakia’s gas and oil.

Some Where (2016) by JOZEF AND MARTIN ŽOVINEC

With its economic prosperity achieved, largely as a result of the establishment of numerous car production plants in the country, making it something of a European Detroit, Slovakia is still a land of majestic peaks and fertile valleys wide rivers such as the Danube and fast-flowing torrents. The highest mountain in the country, the Gerlacho- vský štít, with its 2,655 metres, dominates the other peaks of the High Tatras chain in the northeast of the country, and is part of the mountainous Carpathian mountain range to- gether with the Low Tatras. Much of the massif has been designated national parkland and can also be visited by cable car climbing from Tatranská Lomnica to the Skalnaté mountain lake, nestled between the snowy peaks. To the southeast is the Slovak Paradise National Park, almost en- tirely covered with coniferous forests, with narrow canyons, waterfalls, beautiful caves, gorges and accessible trails (Slo- vakia, with almost 20 thousand kilometres of marked hiking trails, can claim the most extensive network in Europe).

Composition (2017) by KATARINA BALUNOVA

With nearly five and a half million inhabitants, Slova- kia is also a country of secular traditions, castles, beautiful cities and interesting towns and villages such as Banská Štiavnica, a mining settlement in the Štiavnica mountains, visited by more than 40 thousand tourists each year. Spiš Castle, in particular, built at the beginning of the twelfth century on a travertine hill, was initially a frontier for- tress on the northern border of the old Hungarian feudal state. It subsequently became the seat of the governors of the Spiš region for many centuries. Among the largest in Europe, the castle has provided the backdrop for historical films such as The Lion in Winter (1968, with Katharine Hepburn and Peter O’Toole, three Oscars) and The Last Legion (2007, with Col- in Firth and Ben Kingsley), and its significance resulted in it being included, together with the surrounding area (Spišská Kapitula, Spišské Podhradie and the church in Žehra), in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 1993.

Life comfort (2016) by KATEŘINA M. VACLAVKOVA

The capital Bratislava, built like Vienna on the shores of the beautiful blue Danube, today has the appearance of a cosmopolitan city that has absorbed the customs and traditions of the various communities that have resided there. Germans, Hungarians, Tziganes and Slovaks suc- ceeded each other in controlling the political and cultural institutions of the city, each leaving their mark. Most of the palaces and monuments that bear witness to the Magyar dominion are concentrated in the old city. Also known as Staré Mesto, it begins with the Michalska tower, whose base forms a gate dating back to the fifteenth century. From here, the homonymous road leads to the hill on which Bratislava Castle stands, overlooking the Danube, characterizing the city’s skyline. The castle dates back to 913 and houses a museum dedicated to the archaeological finds unearthed nearby, including a statue sculpted in mammoth bone.

Boy with sparklers (2017) by LUCIA HORŇAKOVA ČERNAYOVA

The Primate’s Palace, in turn, is renowned because the peace treaty between the Habsburg Empire and Napo- leon’s France after the Battle of Austerlitz was signed in its Hall of Mirrors. Other elegant palaces in the old town, such as the Mirbach Palace and Grassalkovich Palace, today the official residence of the Slovak President, have hosted per- formances by musicians including Mozart, Liszt, Beethoven and Rubinstein. The streets that climb the hill to the Castle are lined with pubs, nightclubs, art galleries and trendy bars. This is the other face of Bratislava, the university town, where the atmosphere is vibrant and the desire for change and hope for the future are clearly perceptible.

Half-asleep (2016) by MARIA CHAPČAK MATRKOVA

If we want to explore the Slovak identity from an historical perspective, we must take into account an impor- tant detail: for centuries the Slovak people did not have their own state and their so-called high literature was written in the languages of other nations, including Latin, Hungarian and Czech. In 1381, the Privilegium pro Slavis granted Slovene inhabitants of the town of Žilina the opportunity to use the Slovak language, but solely for administrative purposes. In 1467, the Hungarian king Matthias approved the foundation of a university called the Istropolitana Academy in Bratisla- va, with four faculties – art, theology, law and medicine – modelled on the University of Bologna, whose statutes were also adopted.

Baby (2016) by MARKO BLAŽO

Important periods for the advancement of Slovak lit- erature were the 1780s and the 1840s, which witnessed new eras of development. Thanks to the reforms of Maria Theresa of Austria and her son Joseph II, a freer atmosphere encour- aged the growth of cultural life. In July 1783 the first Slo- vak-language newspaper, Prešpurské noviny, was printed, in which the publication of the first novel written in Slovak was announced: The Adventures of Young René by Ignazio Bajza. But the first codification of the written language only took place in 1843, with the work of the linguist Ľudovít Štúr. The development of the bourgeoisie in the cities, in particu- lar, was crucial for the formation of Slovak literature, as it went hand in hand with the use of the language.

!Peace, Please! (2016) by MIROSLAV NICZ

Although the poet Pavol Gašparovič Hlbina published these verses in his collection Cesta do raja (Journey to Par- adise, 1933): “Something true there will be: the new world seeks a new rhyme. Twilight clouds are red, we must be hypermodern”, even today, Slovak modernity, suspended between a desire for Europe and attraction to the East, can not ignore its traditions and folklore. Old popular customs still play an important role in the life of the villages, with their distinctive wooden houses and small Orthodox churches.

Figura (2016) by MIROSLAV POMICHAL

Today’s Slovak art also owes much to its glorious past, historically rich in influences and cultural fusions. In 2016, the Tesori gotici dalla Slovacchia (Gothic Treasures from Slovakia) exhibition at the Quirinale Palace in Rome, held in occasion of the Slovakian presidency of the Council of the European Union during the second half of 2016, pre- sented some of the most important works of Slovak figura- tive art from the period when – also in Slovakia – the Middle Ages were beginning to be influenced by the new currents of thought from the south, carrying messages of Humanism and Renaissance.

Conversation (2016) by ROBERT HROMEC

Also in 2016, the exhibition Il modernismo slovacco (Slovak modernism) at the San Domenico Musem in Forlì presented, with a leap forward of a few centuries, another important example of Slovakia’s contribution to artistic in- novation. Slovak modernism (slovenská moderna), brought together those artists whose works responded to contem- porary European figurative movements from the 19th and 20th centuries with originality, making them their own and developing them with individuality, bearing witness to the world in which they lived.

Dion (2016) by ŠTEFAN BALAZS

With this collection, Imago Mundi captures the dy- namism of the moment and, bringing together more than 140 10x12 centimetre works, contributes a wide-ranging, perceptive and intriguing snapshot of Slovak contemporary art. In these works we find confirmation that art is still – in the words of Christine Macel, the curator of the 57th Venice Biennale – “the ultimate ground for reflection, individual ex- pression, freedom, and for fundamental questions.”

LUCIANO BENETTON