Current culture tips for around Slovakia.
International alert on state of Slovak culture
On Wednesday, April 9, the Artistic Freedom Initiative, in cooperation with Open Culture, released a report entitled "Early Warning: The Politicization of Slovak Arts and Culture". The advocacy report is a critical summary of the Slovak government's actions in the field of culture. Its key message states that since October 2023, the Ministry of Culture, led by a nominee of the junior coalition party SNS, has been attacking artistic freedom by vetoing projects that are not in line with the government's views, as well as by replacing staff with politically loyal alternatives.
The Ministry of Culture claims that grants are not automatically allocated to those who have received them before. It asserts that changes at the highest levels of representative institutions such as the Slovak National Theatre, the Slovak National Gallery, the Slovak National Museum, the Slovak National Library, the Slovak Literary Centre, the Slovak Arts Council, etc. are made because of dissatisfaction with practices in leadership and management.
19 Slovak artists and cultural workers provided interviews for this research conducted by sociologist Irene Pavesi, a senior researcher focused on political interferences in the management of cultural institutions, human rights advocacy coordinator Jenifer Laourou, and AFI’s co-executive director Sanjay Sethi.
Haydn at St Martin’s in Bratislava
On Palm Sunday, April 13, 15:00., the Slovak Chamber Orchestra, under the baton of Ewald Danel, will perform at a concert at St. Martin's Cathedral in Bratislava. The program features Joseph Haydn's Seven Last Words of Our Saviour on the Cross, which are traditionally performed in Bratislava during the period leading up to Easter.
World Circus Day in Bratislava
Until Sunday, April 13, it is possible to take part in the festival “World Circus Day” in Bratislava. A number of acrobatic, juggling, and balance workshops will take place on Saturday and Sunday under the guidance of local instructors as well as professionals from abroad. A circus zone is set up at the Karlova Ves Cultural Centre, featuring a performance by the La Zia Production on Saturday. Saturday’s performance will be followed by an “Open Stage,” during which performers can show off their skills.
Katarzia in New York
On Monday, April 14, Bohemian National Hall in New York will host Slovak singer and songwriter Katarzia. Featuring Aid Kid, Robin Galia and Martin Valihora, among others, the performance will highlight songs from Katarzia’s 2016 album “Agnostika”, as well as more recent hits and songs that have not yet been released.
“Sediments of the World” in Bratislava
Bratislava City Gallery will open a transgenerational show entitled “Sediments of the World” on Wednesday, April 16. It is seen as the first major project in Slovakia focused on the phenomenon of collecting as a creative impulse. Curator Naďa Kančevová is presenting works from almost 30 visual artists who have been fascinated with, obsessed with, and inspired by different findings–aka “sediments”–from our material and natural world, which they combine to unique art pieces. Among those exhibited are some big names of Slovak visual art, such as Patrik Illo, Peter Kalmus, Marek Kvetan, Otis Laubert, Svätopluk Mikyta and Roman Ondak; representatives of the younger generation of artists, such as Terézia Jandušíková & Dominika Korbášová or Lucia Židek Gamanová & Matej Židek, among others, will also be present.
Collaborative Easter Ritual
On Wednesday, April 16, LOM space in Bratislava will feature “Holy week: Ritual”, a participatory, multisensory performance. The project, initiated by PAIKKA, a Budapest-based platform for impermanent collectives working at the intersection of art and science, gathers creators from Slovakia, Czechia, Poland, Hungary, Palestine, Ukraine, and Taiwan. The work is a traveling performance unfolding across four countries, where a temporary community is conjured through collective actions: spring cleaning, shared meals, sound-making, and tactile encounters. The Bratislava performance is part of Holy Week in a collaborative reimagining of Eastern traditions through rituals ahead of the Easter season. As the event capacity is limited to 30 people, admission is free, but requires registration.
Easter stamp
The Slovak Post has issued a stamp with a sacral motif from a historic manuscript in the collections of the Ján Bocatius Public Library in Košice for this year's Easter celebration. It depicts the iconographic “Sixth Sorrow”–the Virgin Mary holding Christ in her arms after taking Him down from the cross–widely recognizable from Michaelangelo’s sculpture Madonna della Pietà. This particular depiction of the “Sixth Sorrow” was based on a painting at the Clarissine monastery in Bratislava. The woodcut illustration is taken from the prayer book The Ragged Rose. The manuscript was published in 1846 by the printer Jan Werthmüller and Son in Levoča. The artist who made the illustration into a stamp is Adrian Ferda.
Easter workshops
WESTERN SLOVAKIA:
Petržalka, Bratislava – April 13: spring and new life will be celebrated, along with the resurrection of Christ, in the event named “Easter Petržalka”, to be held at the Cik Cak Centre of this Bratislava borough. Visitors can enjoy a community market, decorate eggs with wire and wax, braid willow whips, and make willow baskets. The event will surely feature a lot of music, food, and beverages. As an added highlight, there will be a book swap.
Modra – April 17 & 19: Slovak folk majolica invites the community for workshops on decorating eggs and ceramics, plus guided tours around the factory that produces Slovakia’s iconic blue and white ceramics.
Bratislava Castle – April 18-21: medieval crafts, fashion, and dishes will transport visitors back to the 14th century. The event will be accompanied by an exhibition presenting a history of Easter traditions. Admission is free.
CENTRAL SLOVAKIA:
Banská Bystrica – April 8-16, every day at 14:00: interactive workshops on traditional crafts will be held in the SNP square, including decorating eggs with wax, wire or sheep wool, making beeswax candles, and braiding willow whips. The program also features interviews with artisans who are sharing their memories of Easter from their childhoods.
Banská Bystrica – April 12: the Festival of linen and woven art will present the history of products made of linen, a material widely used in the past in the territory of modern-day Slovakia. It will be possible to try traditional weaving and spinning, plus make clothes or accessories from linen.
Martin – April 13: The Museum of the Slovak village will observe the ritual “killing of Morena”, an effigy made of straw, dressed in women’s clothes, which symbolizes the winter. This ritual predates Christianity, and when people were eager to welcome spring, the idea was that Morena had to be killed, either by drowning or burning. The welcoming of the season will be accompanied by a performance of children's folklore ensembles, pre-Easter and Easter customs, Easter egg decorating demonstrations, Easter whipping, and dressing up.
Banská Štiavnica – April 12: The Slovak Mining Museum is organising Easter workshops in Kammerhof, including decorating eggs with wax and felt. It will also be possible to make toy wooden birds.
EASTERN SLOVAKIA:
Trebišov – April 13: the “Palm Sunday” event in the Museum and Cultural Centre of Southern Zemplín will feature traditional, non-traditional, and other techniques of painting Easter eggs. Visitors will be able to purchase their own Easter eggs as well as other themed decorations available in the Easter aisle. Music will be provided by the Parchovianka ensemble.
Prešov – April 18: Good Friday will once again be the day of Living Stations of the Cross, the re-enactment of the Biblical story of the sentencing and crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Annually, hundreds of believers watch the parade across the city centre. This year, it will start at 10:00 in the Záhrada umenia, the Garden of Art.
