The Hana exhibition, which is subtitled A Woman Ahead of Her Time, sheds light on the life and work of Hana Gregorová, an important writer and feminist. (source: Jana Liptáková)
In 1929, the British writer Virginia Woolf wrote her seminal essay A Room of One’s Own and Slovak writer Hana Gregorová wrote her book A Slovak Woman by the Fireplace and a Book. Although these are different works from different backgrounds, both authors observed the conditions in which female creativity emerges. They also show how difficult it was in the past for girls and women to find space for their own development.
But while Woolf is today recognised as a strong advocate for women’s rights, Gregorová is, even in Slovakia, known more or less only as the wife of writer Jozef Gregor Tajovský. But she was, in her own right, an intellectual, writer and organiser of cultural life.
Hana
The exhibition is taking place in the Bratislava City Museum, Apponyi Palace, Radničná 1, until August 31, 2025.
It is open daily, except Mondays, from 10:00 till 18:00
Admission is €5
“Many of her texts could be put into more contemporary language and would resonate even today, because they relate, for example, to contemporary culture, mentality and the theme of love of nation versus blind nationalism,” said Jana Jablonická Zezulová, one of the curatorial trio behind the exhibition Hana in the Bratislava City Museum, which introduces this significant personality.
The exhibition, which is subtitled A Woman Ahead of Her Time, sheds light on the life and work of this important writer and feminist. In 16 rooms over two floors, visitors can flip through her book, see her personal objects including her writing desk, and get to know more about her.
“Our goal was to introduce Hana Gregorová,” said Daniel Hupko, curator of the literary collections of the Bratislava City Museum, adding that in January Slovakia commemorated 140 years since her birth, meaning sufficient time has passed to be able to evaluate her work. “We present her as a woman, as a writer, an intellectual, a wife, a mother, and a person who was passionate about the emancipation of women and new themes in literature.”
