Art Will Not Be Silent!
Half-life: Vol 0. of Recreational and Leisure Arts.
Old Town Gallery Zichy, Ventúrska 9, Bratislava
The exhibition of the initiative Art Will Not Be Silent! is created as an immediate reaction to the public statements of the Minister of Culture Martina Šimkovičová. Her claims that people at cultural events should primarily “rest and relax”, along with her repeated questioning of the connection between art and politics, mobilize the cultural community. Many of the oratory bon mots of the main cultural representative forever get deep under the skin of the actors to whom they are addressed.
The motif of separating art from politics appears repeatedly in her performances – whether behind the podium or in front of the cameras. The idea of cultural institutions as spaces primarily intended for relaxation and undemanding consumption of art thus becomes a symptomatic expression of a reductive understanding of their own social function.
In the current political situation, the idea of some kind of release or relaxation at exhibitions and theaters is only a wishful thinking of those who do not want to understand the social significance of art.
It is this perspective that is the starting point of the exhibition of the initiative Art Will Not Be Silent!.