The Dance of the Urban Shaman

Artists from the collection: Karol Baron, Tomáš Cetera, Jaroslav Čech, Slavomír Durkaj, Paulína Halasová, Milan Hnat, Alan Hyža, Petr Jedlička (CZ), Zuzana Antalová Kacvinská, Martin Kacvinský, Robo Kočan, Gabriel Kosmály, Kamil Kozub, Mikuláš Kravjanský (SK/CA), Štefan Kubík, Jan Mezřický (CZ), Richard Roháč, Peter Rónai, Rudolf Sikora, Mikuláš Siranko, Peter Župník
Guests: Costin Brateanu (RO), Asztrid Csatlós (HU), Viktor Fuček (SK), Martin Knut (SK), Judith Lesur (FR), Vinay Sharma (IN), Sophia Schomberg & Nikolaus Baumgarten (DE), Tomasz Wendland (PL)

The exhibition of works by 21 artists from the collection of the Gallery of Spiš Artists accompanied by nine artists from Slovakia and abroad (HU, FR, DE, IN, RO, PL) reflect upon the socio-cultural situation in the contemporary Western world which has turned away from reason in favour of more spiritual approaches in search of new experiences and alternative paths to (self)knowledge. The exhibition is presented as part of the Collection in Dialogue dramaturgical cycle of exhibitions.

The exhibition is the result of research in the collection of the Gallery of Spiš Artists and offers an evaluation by means of the re-evaluation of the selected works. The chosen works in various media, ranging from graphics and paintings to site-specific installations, sculptures and videos, are a celebration of the artistic imagination as one of the fundamental aspects of fine art.
The exhibition presents works by 21 artists from the Gallery’s collection and nine invited participants from Slovakia and abroad. The contributions of younger, middle-aged and older generations of artists complement each other in testifying to the vast depth and scope of the human psyche. The performance of the “urban shaman” will grant the exhibition a special power and transport it to a new dimension of time and space.

The exhibition explores the philosophy of animalism within the Western cultural frame of reference, based on our understanding of psychoanalysis, reflecting upon the imagination, dreams, the unconscious, and spirituality and personal mythologies. Granting us access to the realm of the subconscious and touching upon the topic of neo-shamanism, it offers a glimpse into parallel worlds which mirror our thoughts, desires and fears, uncovering new layers of (subjective) reality. The exhibition is divided into two parts – Trippy and Creepy. The “Trippy” section examines the hallucinatory effect of flying or falling, and the beat of the shamanic dance which draws us into other worlds. The “Creepy” section evokes the sense of unease which is a reflection of our fears and the purgatory of traumatic experiences. It also presents “other” beings, both bizarre and eccentric, which inspire a sense of wonder; they can be encountered as archetypal figures as we wander the unconscious, but they may also be found on the fringes of society.

Mgr. art Katarína Balúnová, ArtD., exhibition curator