Slash and Burn Discussion: Sculpture Today
We warmly invite you to the accompanying programme of the exhibition Slash and Burn by the Department of Sculpture, Object, Installation at AFAD: a discussion on contemporary sculpture with guests from among artists, AFAD teaching staff, and students — Matej Gavula (1972), Juraj Rattaj (1984), Martin Hrvol (1989), and Anabela Ralbovská (2004).
Medium Gallery
Annotation
The discussion will take the form of an intergenerational dialogue on approaches to sculpture. Within artistic practice open to intermedia approaches, it will reflect on the needs of higher education and the dismantling of gender stereotypes in the sculptural profession. We will also hear questions and answers concerning the relationship between sculpture and the shaping of the environment, sustainability requirements, and the flow of capital. The discussion will be moderated by Miroslava Urbanová (1991) and will take place on Wednesday, 20 May at 17:00 at Medium Gallery. We look forward to seeing you!
Free admission.
The group exhibitions Slash and Burn (curated by Adam Galko and Alexandra Kadlečík Smolková) at Medium Gallery and TUF at Rare Cultural Space can be visited only until Sunday, 24 May!
Slash and Burn
Roberta Andrášková, Filip Bielek, Tomáš Červenka, Michal Golák, Martin Hrvol, Anna Mihoková, Simona Novická, Anabela Ralbovská, Juraj Rattaj, Samuel Šošovička
Curators: Adam Galko, Alexandra Kadlečík Smolková
Exhibition Opening: Thursday, 23 April 2026, 18:00
24 April – 24 May 2026
Medium Gallery
The term “Slash and Burn” originally refers to a traditional agricultural technique in which land is prepared for a new harvest by burning and clearing old vegetation. This method contains an inherent ambivalence: on the one hand, fire enriches the soil with nutrients and creates space for new growth; on the other, it fundamentally disrupts the existing ecosystem and, when repeated, leads to the gradual depletion of the soil. Today, the term extends beyond its original meaning. It has become a metaphor for our culture, which has adopted the logic of constant burning and replacement — of products, relationships, places, and even our own identities — in the belief that the new is always better than what came before.
The exhibition presents works by graduates and students of the Department of Sculpture, Object, Installation at AFAD in Bratislava, whose work is connected by an intermedia sensitivity to material transformation and a critical exploration of the interfaces between natural cycles, urban environments, and new technologies. Their shared direction is defined by working with the memory of material, recycling, and searching for a balance between the stability of form and the relentless processes of wear and decay.
- This project was financially supported by the Bratislava Self-Governing Region.
- The project was co-financed by an AFAD VGS grant.