The Czech and Slovak Pavilion in Venice. (source: Gandy Gallery)
Culture Minister Martina Šimkovičová didn’t attend the opening of the Czechoslovak Pavilion in the Giardini Gardens in Venice, where the traditional arts festival, the Venice Biennale, kicked off last Saturday.
Artist Oto Hudec represents Slovakia with an installation titled “Floating Arboretum”, which focuses on trees and how to protect them. Visitors can find the exhibition, curated in cooperation with the Slovak National Gallery, on the outer shell of the pavilion until November.
Although the minister herself didn’t travel to Italy to attend the ‘prestigious international event’, as she proudly called it, she shared her opinion on the showcased Slovak display on her social media.
“The opening ended ingloriously, with a dubious presentation of art,” the minister concluded several days ago.
Šimkovičová, a nationalist politician selected for the ministerial post by the far-right Slovenská Národná Strana party, went further and called on the liberals, including ex-culture minister Silvia Hroncová, to stop bringing shame to Slovak culture. She also shared several photos of the Slovak installation and the opening, which was followed by a quiet protest against the Slovak Culture Ministry organised by a group of visitors from the Otvorená Kultúra (Open Culture) initiative - apparently, the biggest problem for Šimkovičová.
“The Slovak Culture Ministry does not represent us,” read posters held by a group of protesters.
