Maja Štefančíková: Ephemeral Sculpture in Galerie Rudolfinum

Invitations Laboratory of Performance Intermedia

We invite you to the accompanying program to the exhibition Iván Argote: Radical Tenderness at Prague's Rudolfinum. The program is authored by artist Maja Štefančíková. The migrating performative action will take place on Thursday, July 31, from 4:00 p.m. to approximately 8:00 p.m. We start at the Rudolfinum Gallery, and admission is free.

^{*photos: Eva Rybářová}

When?

On Thursday, July 31, from 4:00 PM to approximately 8:00 PM
- Approximate schedule*:
  - Start: 4:00 PM Rudolfinum
  - First stop: approx. 4:45 PM former Stalin monument (Metronome at Letná)
  - Second stop: Marian Column at Old Town Square
  - End: Rudolfinum

^{*Dear visitors, unfortunately, the exact schedule of the event cannot be determined. The entire performance depends on interactions with the audience, so it is not possible to estimate the time spent at each stop. Thank you for your understanding. We look forward to seeing you there!}

Where?

The migrating performative action begins at the Rudolfinum gallery
- Alšovo nábř. 12, 110 00 Old Town, Prague 7, Czech Republic
- Admission is free

*More info on the Rudolfinum website

*More about the Radical Tenderness exhibition

About the programme

A group of people stands in a city square performing a participatory action – their arms raised as if sculpting or chiseling something. In the background, a tram, tree-lined street, and city buildings can be seen. It's a clear summer day with a blue sky.

The characteristic medium of Slovak artist Maja Štefančíková is processual performative action. She is interested in social phenomena, such as work, institutions or the world of art; examining and commenting on aesthetic experience, perception and memory. In the long term, she deals with the issues of perception of the audience, which she tests by inconspicuous, often invisible, empty, silent or otherwise subversive inputs, trying to activate the hidden levels of perception.

In the city centre, the history of which is closely tied with the political representation of the changing social establishments, the artist will enact a moving performative event with a group of artists who will chisel fleeting melodic sculptural groups. Tools made for working stone will become musical instruments, each stroke a compositional element. But rather than a concert the result will be an untouchable sound “sculpture” that will complement the public space from a different perspective and will “resound” issues related with the approach to traditional sculpting.

Statues in bronze and stone seem to act as solid and unchangeable forms. However, the ancient damnatio memoriae clearly tells us that even the most stable material does not guarantee their eternal being. Statues and memorials are therefore more brittle than it may seem. The performative action responds to the contextual transformations of the public space consisting in “tearing down idols” usually due to political upheavals, but it also works with collective and individual memory of an informed viewer, someone well-versed in history and a random passer-by.

The artist thematicises what we usually do not perceive when looking at a sculpted object. She accentuates the process of its origin – modelling and transforming the material and the dynamics of the creator’s body during work, just like the sound made when stone is being worked. In this way she deflects attention from a sculpture as a non-living, rigid and silent mass towards live action – a performative act. Just as this sound sculpture suddenly emerges, so it also disappears without leaving a physical trace.

Performers:

Jiří N. Jelínek, Radim Klassa, Prokop Košař, Jana Kozubková, Soňa Linhartová, Valentina Mara, Johanka Schmidtmajerová, Mária Ševčíková, Barča Šošolíková, Bea Stevens, Alessandra Točoňová, Lukáš Zahy

Musical collaboration:

Petra Torkošová

Acknowledgements:

Juraj Gavula, Matej Gavula, Petra Noskaiová

About Maja Štefančíková

Maja Štefančíková is a visual artist and performer dedicated to creating temporary performative situations, primarily through movement and voice. In her work, she explores the body as a network of relationships in space and time – her performative situations combine contemplation with playfulness. She approaches them as continuous, long-term actions with fixed choreography that remain open to stimuli and interactions from the surroundings.

She currently works at the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Bratislava, where she leads the Performance Laboratory.

We would like to thank Internal Grant System of Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Bratislava for its support. Supported using public funding by the Slovak Arts Council.

31/7/2025