The idea of establishing biennial exhibitions of this type in Slovakia arose in 2005. At the birth of the idea and implementation were Prof. Jozef Jankovič, academic sculptor, Ľuba Belohradská, art historian and Viera Moravčíková, project coordinator. The biennial has been associated with the city of Pezinok since its inception and therefore the original title was the Small Format Sculpture Biennial Pezinok. In the beginning, the event referred to the International Biennial of Small Sculpture Murska Sobota (Slovenia). The point was that even in smaller regional cities of small countries, a significant event with an international impact can take place. The inaugural edition of the biennial (led by Ľuba Belohradská) was held in 2007. Initially, it was retrospective in nature and since 1990 the biennial has been a showcase of the works of the graduates from the Academy of Fine Arts in the Slovak Republic and the Czech Republic. Events such as an international colloquium, the CHILDREN AT THE EXHIBITION programme and concerts for the public were an organic part of the project.

Since 2011, this biennial exhibition has developed a vision that has gained importance, and since 2013 it has become an international event, and the exhibitions have been presented to a wide audience in several Slovak galleries, including those in Bratislava.

The current 7th biennial exhibition takes place in the context of the impact of the pandemic. It was designed more modestly, for smaller exhibition spaces. It includes fewer exhibiting artists, in addition to those from Slovakia there are also two guests from the Czech Republic. However, the exhibition in the Záhorie Gallery of Ján Mudroch has expanded to include exhibits that were not displayed in the previous exhibitions in the galleries in Oščadnica and Levoča. We have added three works by Helena Lukášová, two works by Iveta Tomanová and one by Katarína Kissoczy and Bohuš Kubinsky – the artists who have been represented by a single artwork at the exhibition thus far. Concerning Katarína Kissoczy, we added a new object to her triptych.

The exhibition title Sculpture / Matter / Consciousness symbolises slackening and re-immersion in the essence of small sculpture in the themes emerging in the second decade of the 21st century – historicising versus contemporary. In principle, simple, comprehensible concepts are articulated largely through stylised figures, the figure’s torso, an imprint, or an abstracted visual reflection of the artist’s current experience. Of the eleven exhibiting artists, some of them are exhibiting for the second or third time, while others have returned after years, and Ján Zelinka and Miro Žačok have their premieres at this biennial. The younger middle-aged generation of artists and works created in the last two to three years predominate.

The 7th Biennial of Small Sculpture does not represent a complete image about the state of small sculpture in Slovakia. Our ambition was not to hold the salon, but to provide a better understanding of the starting points of the artists’ work based on their exhibits – to look into the thoughts and ideas of at least a few artists.

Roman Popelár