The Fragile Layers of Our Identity 

Kontur Magazine’s February Exhibition Recommendation

In our February exhibition recommendation, we have gathered exhibitions that explore various aspects of identity through their diversity in genre and theme. The featured exhibitions address the situation of minority communities, the impact of history and politics on art, the relationship between body and nature, and the issues of individual and collective memory. Our selection includes both contemporary artistic reflections and projects aiming to reinterpret the past.

Exhibition of the 2024 Oskár Čepan Award Winners // Pisztóry Palace, Bratislava

December 13, 2024 – February 28, 2025
Curator: Denis Kozerawski

The Oskár Čepan Award, granted annually since 1997 to young Slovak artists who address significant global and local social issues in their work, was awarded in 2024 to Kvet Nguyen, Paula Malinowska, Svetlana Fialová, and Tomáš Moravanský. The winners traditionally showcase their work in a group exhibition, which this year is hosted at Pisztóry Palace.

The exhibition, titled Across Endless Moments of Fading Dreams, I’ll Keep the Night a Little Longer For You, features works addressing themes such as the existence of Vietnamese (and other) minority communities in Slovakia, the relationship between humans and nature, and the social pressures experienced by women in patriarchal structures.

Read our article about the exhibition here.

Haptic Echo. Nature, Body, Politics and Art in Former Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia. // Bratislava City Gallery

October 10, 2024 – March 16, 2025
Curators: Daniel Grúň, Darko Šimičić, and Miško Šuvaković

This exhibition focuses on conceptual and performative art from the 1960s to the 1980s in regions of Europe connected by a shared socialist past and a search for freedom – Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia. According to the curatorial text “the exhibition presents the parallel and often interwoven narratives of the art of two modern European alliances that ceased to exist at the end of the 20th century.”

The exhibition was created in collaboration with various state and private collections as well as nonprofit organizations from Slovakia and abroad.

Kristián Németh: Fragments of Fragility // Gandy Gallery, Bratislava

January 15, 2025 – March 7, 2025
Curator: Michal Stolárik

Kristián Németh’s solo exhibition Fragments of Fragility centers on an evolving installation that has been in progress since 2012. The delicate architecture of stacked crystal objects – glasses, vases, candleholders, and sugar bowls – symbolizes the fragility of both society and personal life.

Complementing this work is Németh’s latest project, The Herbarium of Time, which attempts to halt the passage of time by encapsulating flowers in epoxy resin, preventing their decay.

In another section of the gallery, as part of the Chapter1 program showcasing young artists, Belarusian artist Lisa Deikun presents ceramic objects exploring themes of queer existence, alienation, fragility, and fluidity.

Myth – Faith – History // Contemporary Hungarian Gallery, Dunajská Streda

January 17, 2025 – March 11, 2025

The Dunajská Streda-born, Munkácsy Award-winning sculptor György Lipcsey was self-taught in his craft and later worked as a restorer and drawing teacher. His public sculptures can be found in multiple locations, including Veľký Meder, Dolný Štál, Dunajská Streda, Zemné, Okoč, and Horné Mýto. In 1998, he founded the Art-Ma Gallery in Dunajská Streda to promote both Slovak and Hungarian artists. This exhibition at the Contemporary Hungarian Gallery presents a selection of Lipcsey’s works related to the themes of the Myth, Faith, History album published by the Vámbéry Civic Association.

Untitled Exhibition (A Visual Ballad About a Small Country) // Nitra Gallery (Nitrianska galéria)

November 22, 2024 – May 18, 2025
Curators: Ľudmila Kasaj Poláčková and Andrea Pleidel

Showcasing over 200 works, this exhibition is the first part of a series celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Nitra Gallery. The concept is based on a dialogue between classical and contemporary works, addressing various still-relevant themes such as individual freedom and social status within the family, workplace, and nation.

Untitled Exhibition (A Visual Ballad of a Small Country) presents the intellectual narrative of a young, still-maturing nation, reflecting on the identity and social context of people living in Slovakia.

Gejza Angyal – Restored Paintings // Central Slovak Gallery (Stredoslovenská galéria), Banská Bystrica

November 13, 2024 – March 30, 2025
Curator: Katarína Minka Baraníková

This exhibition offers insight into the life’s work of Gejza Angyal (1888–1956), a painter from Kremnica. Angyal studied art in Budapest and began his early career in Banská Bystrica, where the mining town’s atmosphere deeply influenced his graphics and paintings. His early works prominently feature mining and urban landscapes – ideologically favored themes of the time – while his later works reflect global concerns such as economic crises and the looming threat of World War II.

The exhibition is organized in collaboration with the Central Slovak Gallery, the Slovak National Bank – Kremnica Mint and Medal Museum, and the Slovak National Gallery – Zvolen Castle.

Cover Image: Detail from Lisa Deikun’s Chapter 1 exhibition. (Source: Gandy Gallery website.)