Mária Balážová
Encyclopedia
Mária Balážová is a contemporary Slovak
artist. Her practise as an artist is usually associated with new geometry, post-geometry and postmodern.
- since 1997. Husband - Blazej Balaz
, slovak painter.
Immediately at the beginning, Mária Balážová, created her own „personal mythology“, emphasizing a snake motif in the geometrically stylised form of a cobra. This animal, which occupies an important position in world mythologies and religions, became the main motif of cycles of paintings, to which the artist gave the name Serpent Geometry. Balážová distinguished herself from classic Neo-Constructivism, outlined on subjectless combinations of shapes and colours, put together into geometric structures. Art theorists appreciate the „new significance“ she achieved by creating radically reductive forms (Jiří Valoch, 2002). "
Her works are held in the collections of Slovak National Gallery
, Bratislava, National Gallery, Prague (CZ), Wannieck Gallery Brno (CZ), Jan Koniarek Gallery http://www.gjk.sk/en/exhibition/, Trnava.
The artist has been a member of the revived Club of Concrete Artists 2 and the artist's group East of Eden
. She lives and works in Trnava
.
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
artist. Her practise as an artist is usually associated with new geometry, post-geometry and postmodern.
Life and work
Balážová studied at the Academy of Muse Arts, Bratislava and Magister of Arts degree received in 1984. Balážová is also known as a teacher at the University of TrnavaUniversity of Trnava
The University of Trnava is a college of "university type" based in Trnava, Slovakia.-Historical university:The original Jesuit university was founded in 1635 by the Archbishop of Esztergom, Peter Pázmány. It had a faculty of arts, faculty of theology, faculty of law and faculty of medicine...
- since 1997. Husband - Blazej Balaz
Blažej Baláž
Blažej Baláž is a contemporary Slovak artist. His practise as an artist is usually associated with Neo-conceptualism, Postminimalism, Post-Geo and Post Radical Painting...
, slovak painter.
Immediately at the beginning, Mária Balážová, created her own „personal mythology“, emphasizing a snake motif in the geometrically stylised form of a cobra. This animal, which occupies an important position in world mythologies and religions, became the main motif of cycles of paintings, to which the artist gave the name Serpent Geometry. Balážová distinguished herself from classic Neo-Constructivism, outlined on subjectless combinations of shapes and colours, put together into geometric structures. Art theorists appreciate the „new significance“ she achieved by creating radically reductive forms (Jiří Valoch, 2002). "
Her works are held in the collections of Slovak National Gallery
Slovak National Gallery
The Slovak National Gallery is a network of galleries in Slovakia. It has its headquarters in Bratislava.The gallery was established by law on 29 July 1949. In Bratislava, it has its displays situated in Esterházy Palace and the Water Barracks which are adjacent to each other...
, Bratislava, National Gallery, Prague (CZ), Wannieck Gallery Brno (CZ), Jan Koniarek Gallery http://www.gjk.sk/en/exhibition/, Trnava.
The artist has been a member of the revived Club of Concrete Artists 2 and the artist's group East of Eden
East of Eden
East of Eden is a novel by Nobel Prize winner John Steinbeck, published in September 1952.Often described as Steinbeck's most ambitious novel, East of Eden brings to life the intricate details of two families, the Trasks and the Hamiltons, and their interwoven stories. The novel was originally...
. She lives and works in Trnava
Trnava
Trnava is a city in western Slovakia, 47 km to the north-east of Bratislava, on the Trnávka river. It is the capital of a kraj and of an okres . It was the seat of a Roman Catholic archbishopric . The city has a historic center...
.
Awards
- 1990 Honorable Mention, Drawing 1990, Provo (USA)
- 1995 Prize of Masaryk's Academy, Prague (CZ)
Selected solo exhibitions
- Serpent Geometry 2, Jan Koniarek Gallery, TrnavaTrnavaTrnava is a city in western Slovakia, 47 km to the north-east of Bratislava, on the Trnávka river. It is the capital of a kraj and of an okres . It was the seat of a Roman Catholic archbishopric . The city has a historic center...
, 23 May – 23 June 1996 (catalogue) - Dozen 1988-2000, The East Slovak GalleryEast Slovak GalleryThe East Slovak Gallery in Košice was founded in 1951 as the first regional gallery in Slovakia.The Baroque-Classical palace-type building was erected in 1779 for the needs of the Abov comitatus council. The building continued to serve as a comitatus hall until 1928...
, Košice, 14 September – 15 October 2000 - Nadowessioux, Bratislava City GalleryBratislava City GalleryThe Bratislava City Gallery is a gallery located in Bratislava, Slovakia, in the Old Town. It is the second largest Slovak gallery of its kind...
, 1 February – 11 March 2001 - Mária and Blažej Baláž : The Discreet Charm of the Painting , House of Art, Česke BudějoviceCeské BudejoviceČeské Budějovice is a city in the Czech Republic. It is the largest city in the South Bohemian Region and is the political and commercial capital of the region and centre of the Roman Catholic Diocese of České Budějovice and of the University of South Bohemia and the Academy of Sciences...
, 27 March – 21 April 2002, Czech Republic - Alphabet, Jan Koniarek Gallery, TrnavaTrnavaTrnava is a city in western Slovakia, 47 km to the north-east of Bratislava, on the Trnávka river. It is the capital of a kraj and of an okres . It was the seat of a Roman Catholic archbishopric . The city has a historic center...
, 9 September – 24 October 2004 (catalogue) - New significance, Nitra Gallery, NitraNitraNitra is a city in western Slovakia, situated at the foot of Zobor Mountain in the valley of the river Nitra. With a population of about 83,572, it is the fifth largest city in Slovakia. Nitra is also one of the oldest cities in Slovakia and the country's earliest political and cultural center...
, 28 June – 23 July 2007 - Mária Balážová-Blažej Baláž : Post-Geo-Text, Slowakisches Institut, BerlinBerlinBerlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, 14 April – 30 May 2011, Germany
Selected group exhibitions
- Art Basel 20´89, BaselBaselBasel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...
, Switzerland, 1989 - Drawing 1990, ProvoProvoProvo was a Dutch counterculture movement in the mid-1960s that focused on provoking violent responses from authorities using non-violent bait. It was preceded by the nozem movement and followed by the hippie movement...
, USA, 1990 - Vth International Drawing Triennale, WroclawWroclawWrocław , situated on the River Oder , is the main city of southwestern Poland.Wrocław was the historical capital of Silesia and is today the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. Over the centuries, the city has been part of either Poland, Bohemia, Austria, Prussia, or Germany, but since 1945...
, Poland, 1992 - Club of Concretists, Bratislava, Slovak National GallerySlovak National GalleryThe Slovak National Gallery is a network of galleries in Slovakia. It has its headquarters in Bratislava.The gallery was established by law on 29 July 1949. In Bratislava, it has its displays situated in Esterházy Palace and the Water Barracks which are adjacent to each other...
, Bratislava, Slovakia, 1999 - Eine kurze Geschichte zur Malerei, LeverkusenLeverkusenLeverkusen is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany on the eastern bank of the Rhine. To the South, Leverkusen borders the city of Cologne and to the North is the state capital Düsseldorf....
, Germany, 2001 - Contemporary Slovak Painting 2000-2005, Prague, City Gallery, Czech Republic, 2006
- Allied... , National Gallery, Prague, Czech Republic, 2006
- Contemporary Slovak Art 1960-2000, National Museum of Contemporary Art (Romania), Romania, 2007
- Borders of Geometry, Bratislava, House of Art Bratislava,, Slovakia, 2010
- After Hours : Phase 2 / Artists from Slovakia, Santa Ana, Orange County Center for Contemporary Art, USA, 2010
Works
- Archetyp (1988) : Collection of Slovak National Gallery, Bratislava
- Pose VII (1989)
- Rocket Man 1 (1989)
- Lexicon 1 (1990)
- Flowing 6 (1993) : Collection of Jan Koniarek Gallery, Trnava http://www.gjk.sk/sk/zbierky/diela-po-r-1945/
- Serpent Geometry 2 (1994) : Collection of Jan Koniarek Gallery, Trnava http://pdfweb.truni.sk/fak/katedry/kpvu/mbalazova/m_balazova_pict_hg2.html
- Serpent Geometry 3 (1994) http://pdfweb.truni.sk/fak/katedry/kpvu/mbalazova/m_balazova_pict_hg3.html
- Serpent Geometry 5 (1996) http://pdfweb.truni.sk/fak/katedry/kpvu/mbalazova/m_balazova_pict_hg5.html
- Serpent Geometry 15 – Church (1998) http://pdfweb.truni.sk/fak/katedry/kpvu/mbalazova/m_balazova_pict_hg15%20chram.html
- Serpent Geometry 33 – Fatum (2000/01) http://pdfweb.truni.sk/fak/katedry/kpvu/mbalazova/m_balazova_pict_hg33.html
- Serpent Geometry 40 – Alphabet 3 (2002) : Collection of National Gallery, Prague http://pdfweb.truni.sk/fak/katedry/kpvu/mbalazova/m_balazova_pict_hg40.html
- Serpent Geometry 43 (2004)http://pdfweb.truni.sk/fak/katedry/kpvu/mbalazova/m_balazova_pict_hg43.html
- Serpent Geometry 49 - Portrait (2005/06) : Collection of Wannieck Gallery Brno http://www.wannieckgallery.cz/vystava/4/cz/pitoreska-o-soucasnem-slovenskem-obraze/minule/15
- Serpent Geometry – Shoot (2005) http://pdfweb.truni.sk/fak/katedry/kpvu/mbalazova/m_balazova_pict_hg_12.html
- Serpent Geometry 70 – History (2005/07)
- Chaos 1 (2006/09) http://www.woxart.com/polozky.php?item_id=4967
Books and Catalogues
- BALGAVÁ, B. - ORAVCOVÁ, J. - VALOCH, J. 1997. Mária Balážová. Trnava : Ján Koniarek Gallery, 32 p.
- VALOCH, J. 2002. Mária Balážová / Serpent Geometry 1997-2002. Trnava : Trnava University, 12 p.
- BESKID, V. - VALOCH, J. - GAJDOŠ, R. 2009. Mária Balážová / 1985-2009. Trnava : Typi Universitatis Tyrnaviensis, (English – Slovak, colour), 111 p. ISBN 978-80-8082-265-1
Further reading
- BESKID, V. 1998. 6 Slovak contemporary painters. Košice : V. Löffler Museum, 24 p.
- ORIŠKOVÁ, M. 1999. Abstract art. In GERŽOVÁ, J. 1999 (ed). Dictionary of World and Slovak Fine Art in the 2nd half of the 20th century Bratislava : Kruh súčasného umenia Profil, p. 16
- BESKID, V. 1999. New geometry. In GERŽOVÁ, J. 1999 (ed). Dictionary of World and Slovak Fine Art in the 2nd half of the 20th century. Bratislava : Kruh súčasného umenia Profil, p. 201
- BARTOŠOVÁ, Z. 1999. Mária Balážová. In Contemporary Slovak Art. Bratislava : Rabbit and Solution, p. 6
- VALOCH, J. 2001. In-between Pure Geometry and Semantics. In Ateliér, vol.14, no.6, p. 9 (CZ)
- BÖHMEROVÁ, Z. – JANČÁR, I. 2007. Slovak Graphics of the 20th Century. Bratislava : Municipal Gallery, 2007, p. 267, 314
- BARTOŠOVÁ, Z. 2007. 20th Century. In Art in Slovakia / Summary History of Pictures. Bratislava : Slovart, p. 224, 225
- TOMÁŠOVÁ, I. 2007. New significance. In Vlna, vol. IX, no.32, p. 90 - 91. Bratislava : Občianske združenie Vlna
- BELOHRADSKÁ, Ľ. – TROJANOVÁ, E. 2009. Borders of Geometry. Bratislava : PETUM, 429 p. (English – Slovak, colour)
- KNÍŽÁK, M. – VLČEK, T. (eds.). 2009. 909 / Art from the Turn of the Millennium in the National Gallery in Prague 1990 - 2009. Prague - National Gallery, p. 147, 362
- GERŽOVÁ, J. 2009. Talks about Painting. Bratislava : Slovart, VŠVU Bratislava, p. 232 - 247
External links
- http://www.bbalaz.sk/
- http://www.artfacts.net/en/artist/maria-balazova-148595/profile.html
- http://www.kunstaspekte.de/index.php
- http://www.artgallery.sk
- http://www.osobnosti.sk/index.php?os=zivotopis&ID=59281&mainkat=4
- http://sk.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mária_Balážová
- http://pdfweb.truni.sk/fak/katedry/kpvu/mbalazova/index.html
- http://www.nitrianskagaleria.sk/index.php?cmd=vys_det&id=387