DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.41588#0046
centre os European importance, a city — to put it metaphorically — walking just one step behind
Paris. Miroslav MosoSka (1891-1955), Jozes PospiSil (1897-1976), Vojtech Ihrisky(l899-1988), and
Ladislav Majcrsky (1900-1965) come to study there and later on also Frano Stesunko (1903-1974).
They arrived in Prague in the period os hope aroused by the new sree state, slying on the wings os
'images. ”We live in an empire os our pleasastest dreams... we give this world what we have: our deep
and gently thinking souls unspoiled by a western born material spirit” can be read in Svojct magazine
— the rostrum os Slovak students in Prague.5 Yet harder was the reality they had to sace on their
return back to Slovakia. The sirst hals os the twenties was a period of apprenticeship under the
supervision os the samous prosessors Ladislav Saloun, Otakar Spaniel, Joses Maratka and especially
Jan Stursa. Their cabinet works resulted srom the situation in Czech sculpture os the twenties, as
before European, although it had to persorm new social tasks.
While MotoSka was already during his studies engaged in work on a large monument to Milan
Rastislav Stesanik sor Cleveland, U. S. A., his sellow — sculptors experienced various creative
problems: PospiSii absorbed impulses srom Stursa’s work — as indicated by the sensualism and
meditative lyricism os his early compositions Female Head, 1925 (sig. 34), Dream, 1929, Morning,
1932, Melancholy, 1933. Social civility was especially strong in the Prague milieu. It came srom
Gutsreund’s ceramic reduction os shape and overlapping with the Neo-Classical sormula os
’’polished” and generalized sorm. In Slovakia this plastic optics was coming to a close in the early
thirties (Ladislav Majersky: Lovers, The Kiss, Poverty — Out os Work (sig. 35), Frano Stesunko:
Woman Harvester, Woman with Pots, Paviours, etc.). Ihrisky’s tendencies to the social civility
underwent a dramatic transsormation — srom idyllic and idealizing social by sympathetic scenes os
peasant genere (Noon, Hay-Stacker, Out of Work Hungry, sirst hals os twenties) to socio-critica!
conception (Jealousy, Hard Work, 1928).
In 1928 the Czechoslovak Republic celebrated the 10th anniversary os its existence. At the same
time the date was a symbolical signal sor reslection over those years os development. The Slovak
nation recalled the personalities os the past in order Jo introduce new postulates and new heroes.
Slovak sculptors who were promising in the development os their work suddenly, towards the end os
the twenties had to sace a ”used-to-be, rejected” materialistic spirit os their monuments. Their
creativity was hampered, retarded, in the sorm os unexperienced inner schemes os numerous
quickly-modelled monuments. The plinths did not turn into pedestals and sools into national heroes.
In further development they became the victims os a new ungovernable social intention.
In conclusion, I will allow mysels a bries epilogue beyond the time boundary os the twenties and
explaining when and how Modernism entered the Slovak sculpture. The time delay is evident. Within
the nex two decades (thirties and sorties) Slovak sculptors made an essort to enter the gates os modern
sculpture and, under disserent historical circumstances, they continued the essence os its European
prologue.
The sirst source os inspiration represented by Rodin’s work made its main impact on Koniarek and
Bärtfay in the twenties and the thirties, on Jozes Kostka in the sorties (sig. 36). Kostka was the sirst to
set a sculpture sree its previous ties and promote it to a means os spiritual consession and testimony.
Other sculptors drew their inspiration srom the Neo-Classicism based tradition, Murmann in the
twenties and Rudols PribiS in the sorties (sig. 37) sollowed a Maillolesque revival os the
Mediterranean roots os European sculpture. It can be said that Slovak sculpture headed towards
Modernism via the "classical” route. The Cubist and Constructivist revolution which was to create
the nucleus os the European twenties was the sirst contact with the "non-Classical" path. As
a reslection os Brancusi’s work it appeared in the sorm os the rustic and simplisying archetypes os
44
Paris. Miroslav MosoSka (1891-1955), Jozes PospiSil (1897-1976), Vojtech Ihrisky(l899-1988), and
Ladislav Majcrsky (1900-1965) come to study there and later on also Frano Stesunko (1903-1974).
They arrived in Prague in the period os hope aroused by the new sree state, slying on the wings os
'images. ”We live in an empire os our pleasastest dreams... we give this world what we have: our deep
and gently thinking souls unspoiled by a western born material spirit” can be read in Svojct magazine
— the rostrum os Slovak students in Prague.5 Yet harder was the reality they had to sace on their
return back to Slovakia. The sirst hals os the twenties was a period of apprenticeship under the
supervision os the samous prosessors Ladislav Saloun, Otakar Spaniel, Joses Maratka and especially
Jan Stursa. Their cabinet works resulted srom the situation in Czech sculpture os the twenties, as
before European, although it had to persorm new social tasks.
While MotoSka was already during his studies engaged in work on a large monument to Milan
Rastislav Stesanik sor Cleveland, U. S. A., his sellow — sculptors experienced various creative
problems: PospiSii absorbed impulses srom Stursa’s work — as indicated by the sensualism and
meditative lyricism os his early compositions Female Head, 1925 (sig. 34), Dream, 1929, Morning,
1932, Melancholy, 1933. Social civility was especially strong in the Prague milieu. It came srom
Gutsreund’s ceramic reduction os shape and overlapping with the Neo-Classical sormula os
’’polished” and generalized sorm. In Slovakia this plastic optics was coming to a close in the early
thirties (Ladislav Majersky: Lovers, The Kiss, Poverty — Out os Work (sig. 35), Frano Stesunko:
Woman Harvester, Woman with Pots, Paviours, etc.). Ihrisky’s tendencies to the social civility
underwent a dramatic transsormation — srom idyllic and idealizing social by sympathetic scenes os
peasant genere (Noon, Hay-Stacker, Out of Work Hungry, sirst hals os twenties) to socio-critica!
conception (Jealousy, Hard Work, 1928).
In 1928 the Czechoslovak Republic celebrated the 10th anniversary os its existence. At the same
time the date was a symbolical signal sor reslection over those years os development. The Slovak
nation recalled the personalities os the past in order Jo introduce new postulates and new heroes.
Slovak sculptors who were promising in the development os their work suddenly, towards the end os
the twenties had to sace a ”used-to-be, rejected” materialistic spirit os their monuments. Their
creativity was hampered, retarded, in the sorm os unexperienced inner schemes os numerous
quickly-modelled monuments. The plinths did not turn into pedestals and sools into national heroes.
In further development they became the victims os a new ungovernable social intention.
In conclusion, I will allow mysels a bries epilogue beyond the time boundary os the twenties and
explaining when and how Modernism entered the Slovak sculpture. The time delay is evident. Within
the nex two decades (thirties and sorties) Slovak sculptors made an essort to enter the gates os modern
sculpture and, under disserent historical circumstances, they continued the essence os its European
prologue.
The sirst source os inspiration represented by Rodin’s work made its main impact on Koniarek and
Bärtfay in the twenties and the thirties, on Jozes Kostka in the sorties (sig. 36). Kostka was the sirst to
set a sculpture sree its previous ties and promote it to a means os spiritual consession and testimony.
Other sculptors drew their inspiration srom the Neo-Classicism based tradition, Murmann in the
twenties and Rudols PribiS in the sorties (sig. 37) sollowed a Maillolesque revival os the
Mediterranean roots os European sculpture. It can be said that Slovak sculpture headed towards
Modernism via the "classical” route. The Cubist and Constructivist revolution which was to create
the nucleus os the European twenties was the sirst contact with the "non-Classical" path. As
a reslection os Brancusi’s work it appeared in the sorm os the rustic and simplisying archetypes os
44