The Road to the Slovak Myth : The Construction of the Identity of Slovak Art Modernism in the Context of the Idea of Czechoslovakism
Abstract
The publication deals with the formation of programmatic Slovak art modernism inthe period of the First Czechoslovak Republic (1918-1938) in the context of the official ideology of Czechoslovakism and in relation to Czech art. For manyartists, theorists, and art historians in Slovakia, who, as part of theintelligentsia felt obliged in the newly formed state to create and affirmational identity through art, the search for Slovakness in art was crucial.
This search was influenced by the nature of Czechoslovak cultural relations, mutual misunderstandings, and stereotypes. The forms of Slovak art modernism were formed in close connection with Czech art modernism and at the same time as resistance to it.
In this sense, we can consider the emphasis on Slovaknessin the visual arts, with its emphasis on the subject, as an attempt not to merge artistically with the current of Czech modernity. This study examines how national identity is constructed through the visual arts and what role the broader cultural and political background of the artistic scene plays in it.