Speech by the Representative of the Graduating Students at the Graduation Ceremony on July 3, 2025

 

Your Magnificence,
Your Honorability,
Dear parents, grandparents, siblings, family,
Dear friends and acquaintances,

 

Today we stand before you as fresh graduates. It is strange to stand at the end of something we could not imagine would ever end.

We woke up in the morning to studios, to work, or to lectures – sometimes with enthusiasm, other times tired after a sleepless night. For years we created, wrote, discussed, experienced crises and joys. We come from different studios, disciplines, with different opinions and ways of working. But we are united by the experience of one school, which gave us more than just knowledge and degrees.

For many of us, the Academy of Fine Arts was a small personal bubble. A bubble where we felt accepted. Where we could grow, try, fail, and improve. Where we could be ourselves. And precisely because it was different from the world out there, we will miss it a little.

Our school is exceptional. It is not perfect – but it is brave. It is a space that is not afraid to say out loud what others prefer to remain silent about. A place where we felt free – not because it was always easy here, but because there were people who believed it mattered. Teachers who encouraged us when we hesitated. Who listened to us even when we spoke quietly. Who stood by us without grand gestures.

 

Art and culture in Slovakia today face difficult times and difficult people – but it was here that we met people whose attitude proves that it is worth fighting for. Thank you – to the teachers, who were true role models for us. Who shaped us not only as artists but also as people. Who taught us not only to work with material but also with our own conscience.

Thank you also to the Rector – for standing by the school and by us. For her voice being clear when it was most needed. For showing us that a school can be not only an institution but also a community. We are proud to have been part of a school that is not afraid to call things by their true names. That stands for democracy, for freedom, for the rights of minorities. That spoke up when it mattered. And that opened its doors to those who needed it.

Thank you also to you, dear parents.
Without your support, we would not be standing where we are today.
And even though it was not always easy to understand what we were doing, you never stopped believing it made sense.
You listened to us even when we talked about things unfamiliar to you. Sometimes we brought home strange things, had odd requests – and you were always ready to help. Thank you for your trust, patience, and for giving us the space to be ourselves.

Thank you also to our families, partners, friends, and everyone who accompanied us through these years.
Who shared with us the nervousness of defenses, sleepless nights before deadlines, small victories and big failures. Without your encouragement, hugs, or tearful phone calls, it wouldn’t have been possible. You were our support and safety when things were tough.

And finally, dear classmates,
Our paths crossed at different moments and for different lengths of time.
With some, we spent six years in one studio, with others a year in a dorm or just a semester in a shared course. We changed each other.
We shared ideas, doubts, joys, and silence. Many of these friendships we will carry forward – and perhaps those are the most valuable things we take with us.

 

We are leaving the bubble. But not as those who run away.
Rather as those who had the chance to grow in safety – and now have the strength to move forward.
We leave with the feeling that we have something to offer.
That we know how we want to create, work – and most importantly, how we want to live.

 

In conclusion, we would like to wish our school courage.
May it continue to make difficult but right decisions. May it never settle for mediocrity. May it not remain stagnant, but continue to grow, seek new paths, new approaches, and new answers. We wish it people who are not afraid to think, change, and act. People who will care not only about its name but also about its soul.

 

Dear Madam Rector, esteemed faculty, dear guests,
allow me, on behalf of all the graduates of the Academy of Fine Arts, to express the belief that through our attitudes, actions, and future work, we will be worthy of the academic titles Master of Arts, Master of Architecture, Master and Doctor of Arts, which were ceremoniously awarded to us today.

 

Thank you for your attention.

 

Zuzana Šupolová, Mgr. art.

representative of the graduating students

3 July 2025