The Earth. The Blue planet. A unique and irreplaceable place to live. Peaceful and wild at the same time. Natural entities such as bacteria, fungi, plants, animals, minerals, forming natural communities and completing the scenery of forests, fields, meadows, mountains and waters are an integral part of it. For man, nature and landscape are not only a place of existence, but also a space for inner meditation and the search for one’s own identity. We identify with the natural life cycle of creation, maturation, extinction and rebirth. The lines of life, fine veins and blood vessels on our hands are also observed on the leaves of plants. We attribute our emotions to elements of nature again. Nature is an inexhaustible source of inspiration. And paradoxically, one’s unreasonable desire for personal comfort or indifference to it is disrupting its natural balance. Is homo sapiens even able to live in harmony with nature, respect it and protect it at a time of growing technical progress and dependence on artificial intelligence? It is during 2019 that we commemorate 100 years of the State Nature Conservancy of the Slovak Republic.
The educational-presentation exhibition entitled How to see art … 2 (nature and landscape) presented in the Central Slovak Gallery in Banská Bystrica works exactly with the topic of nature and landscape set in various thematic contexts. In terms of curatorial selection, the exhibition presents approximately 60 works by approximately 40 authors. These are both older and newer acquisitions in the field of painting, drawing, graphics and photography, which are part of an extensive gallery collection. The collection of the Central Slovak Gallery, which currently has almost 14 000 collection items, allowed a rich selection of works by authors working from the end of the 19th century to the present. They are mostly artists with not only regional but also national significance. As part of the professional preparation of the exhibition, 19 works by 18 authors were restored.
It is not a classic selection in an effort to map the development of landscape painting in terms of style variations or related topics. Rather, it is a presentation of the themes of nature and landscape (landscape scenery, natural elements, life in the country, landscape and man, the phenomenon of physical and mental boundaries, ecology, natural laws, etc.) in the works of artists of various artistic styles from academism to modernism, conceptual art or art in the country – all of that directly related to the educational dimension. It works with interpretative methods and forms concerning how to think about nature and landscape through art works at all levels of perception, explore it, get to know it and, last but not least, try to understand and respect it. It encourages and draws the visitor through an active game with the help of various educational and sensory aids to the creative thought process.
The exhibition works with art as an instrument of education. Finding suitable methods and forms of working with a demanding today’s viewer is one of the current challenges for galleries. “Modern-day galleries” are not only artcollection institutions, institutions serving to present art, but increasingly and more importantly they serve as educational institutions.
Educational exhibition How to see art… 2 (landscape and nature) is a continuation of the series of educational exhibitions carried out by the Department of Gallery Pedagogy at the Central Slovak Gallery, which were awarded the Prize of the Council of Galleries of the Slovak Republic – White Cube – 2.nd place for educational projects From Point to Memory Track (2017/2018) and How to see art … (2018/2019).
During the duration of the exhibition, various accompanying events will take place: guided tours, workshops, presentations aimed at the presentation of works by artists reflecting on the topic of the landscape, up to the screening of films and discussion lectures focused on the field of exploring and protecting nature.
The exhibition and accompanying activities were supported from public resources by the Slovak Arts Council, the Banská Bystrica Self-Governing Region and the City of Banská Bystrica.
Martina Martincová
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Organized by: Central Slovak Gallery
Title of the exhibition: How to see art…2 (nature and landscape)
Authors represented: P. Bartoš, M. A. Bazovský, M. Benka, L. Čemický, A. Čierny, Ľ. Fulla, M. Galanda, E. Gwerk, A. Hlaváček, I. Hudcovič, M. Kern, Z. Palugyay, R. Sikora, M. Švabinský, D. Tóth and others.
Curator: Martina Martincová
Venue: Bethlen’s house (1. floor), Dolná St. 8, Banská Bystrica
Exhibition opening: October 1st, 2019 at 5 p.m. (Tuesday)
Duration of the exhibition: October 2nd, 2019 – March 22nd, 2020
Project concept and exhibition curator: Martina Martincová
Professional cooperation: Renáta Pondelíková
Restoration cooperation: Miroslav Slúka, Peter Ližbetin
Graphic visual: Patrik Ševčík
Concept of the architectural design of the exhibition and realization: Norbert Nečada
Production of audio carrier: Jozef Klimko
Translation: Zuzana Szabóová
