Thanks to a comprehensive monographic exposition of Július Koller you will get to know the personality and work of one of our most famous conceptual artists, whose name has been resounding abroad as well. The exposition has come into being by moving the private collection of Koller′s works from the Antimuseum of J.K. residing on Zámočnícka Street in Bratislava to the premises of the Slovak National Gallery. Now, the best from the original museum, together with exhibits, will find its home in three rooms of the 1st floor of the Esterhazy Palace under the original name Antimuseum of J.K. The new installation will be completed by author′s works from the SNG Fund.
Museum, Gallery, Playground, Educational Platform
The base of the very first solo exposition dedicated to Július Koller was a private collection which came into being in 1998, i.e. in the times when the qualities of this at that time still living author were apparent only to experts. In 2020, the collection transformed into the Antimuseum of J.K. on Zámočnícka Street in Bratislava. Its main part was made up by antipictures, in which Koller was coming into terms with the conceptual art and the climate of the times.
The exposition, incorporating also the most significant moments of the artist′s life and key topics of his work, was complemented by related works and period materials in form of cards, notes, and photographs from the SNG collections. Besides two exhibition floors, the museum comprised two social spaces: Antiplayground on the ground floor – an interactive space with illustrations of the authorial tandem Fuczik – Kakalík (Ondřej Horák, David Kalika) reflecting the “sport” character of Július Koller; and Clubroom in the attic – with a table-tennis table and serving as a social and educational space for more intimate, chamber events.
Július Koller (1939 - 2007)
He was a part of the generation of visual artists, who despite being culturally isolated, did not participate in the period art of Socialist Realism, but took their own original path. Today Július Koller is one of our most respected artists around the world. There is no simple answer to the question "why Koller?" Perhaps it is partially related to the Western idea of our country (material poverty of means and the Kafka-Havel dimension of Koller's anti-art). However, the originality and complexity of Koller's vision of the world, openness and the communicativeness of his artistic gesture is a fact. His works can be found in the collections of the Slovak National Gallery, Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris, the Generali Foundation in Vienna and the Tate Gallery in London.