Envision SadiS // Slovak Art Days in Sofia 2020-2021

18–31 May 2021

 

Exhibition opening and performance:

18 May 2021 (Tuesday), 5.00pm

 

Envision SadiS is a cyclical exhibition project which brings the works of Slovak visual artists of the younger and middle generations to the galleries in European capitals. The first years focused on the Western countries' audiences (Vienna, London, Amsterdam). In 2018, we managed to establish a collaboration with the Academy of Arts in Vilnius and to organise an exhibition in the capital of the Republic of Lithuania, a country close, yet far away. Similar historical circumstances and cultural context of both countries have proved to be an extremely beneficial environment for mutual cooperation.

 

That is why a year later we focused our attention on a country that is culturally close to ours, but we feel there is a certain deficit of mutual cooperation in the field of art and culture. Bulgaria is a modern European country which has undergone historical and cultural changes similar to those in Slovakia. It is a country with a rich history and important cultural institutions, whose identity is an integral part of the wider European context. Therefore, the mutual knowledge brings a deeper understanding of the similarities and differences which make us a unique European community. A community that stands on the foundations of civilization, but gradually transforms into unique, distinctive manifestations.

 

The main goal of the exhibition cycle is to present the current art tendencies in Slovakia. At the same time, it must be mentioned that the selection is not and cannot be representative in terms of form, content or ideology. Being more than a magnificent and representative cross-section of the Slovak art scene, the project is about creating relationships within a related European space, presenting interesting works of art to foreign audiences and creating conditions for the development of cooperation between artists and professionals in the field of art and culture.

 

The selection of artists in the previous years was focused on those working with specific elements of national identity through references to national myths, traditions, historical realities or techniques. The concept of the exhibition intended for the Bulgarian audience is much looser. We try to identify artists whose artistic work responds to current social events in Slovakia. Nevertheless, we believe that certain specifics, whether as a reflection of traditions, folk art legacy, history monitoring, but sumultaneously a recording of current realities, become clear through the current selection as they naturally occur in the work of many contemporary artists. Dealing with the national identity has become a kind of leitmotif of this project, in which the prominent names of the young generation are presented alongside less-known personalities with a potentially strong artistic programme. Thus, recent graduates are introduced side-by-side with artists who have already managed to attract a professional audience in the most prestigious national art competitions such as Painting of the Year, Oskar Čepán Award, either as finalists or award winners.

 

25 artists represent a wide range of art techniques and formal stylistic categories. The focus of the exhibition is painting, which is represented in the most abundant quantity. Sculpture, object, and photography are also presented. The exhibition project includes a performance by action graphic artists Peter Valiska-Timečko and Stanislav Piatrik. The collection is completed with media installations in cooperation with DIG gallery.

 

The ideals and values ​​on which today's Europe was built are being frequently questioned. It is all the more important to create the conditions for getting to know each other, communicating and bringing national units closer together within the area of ​​shared values, traditions and cultural roots that we call Europe. We firmly believe that this event will contribute to strenghtening European values.