Written by Ágnes Kovács
Translated by Zoltán Bartko
An exhibition of the International Rovas Creative Community
Hungarian Contemporary Art Gallery, Dunajská Streda, Slovakia
5 June 2020 - 31 September 2020
The title of the exhibition is as follows: Horror Vacui - meaning "Fear of Emptiness", perhaps more precisely: fear of Nothingness.
Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends!
I am very glad to welcome you here at the exhibition of the Rovás Creative Community based in Košice, Slovakia.
This is not the first time we introduce ourselves here, although our current exhibition has shifted a bit due to the epidemic, but perhaps around the centenary of the Trianon peace treaty and the Day of National Unity, we will be able to connect here and now.
Let me share a few thoughts on the Rovas Community with you. First, let me tell you what Rovas is. Then, also what it is not
Last year, Rovás, a community of artists, friends of art and intellectuals has turned 25; members of this group, although not all of them live in Košice, undertook to keep the Hungarian attribute of the city alive, to make Hungarian contemporary art at least equal to Slovak contemporary art.--
Rovás is not a nationalist, not an exclusionary, not an introverted gathering. The House of the Hungarian Presence in Košice, the MaJel Centre represents the Hungarian spirit with its colours, sounds, smells, tastes, lights, surfaces and depths. It is looking for friends, allies, not enemies. This is supported also by the exhibiting Slovak and Polish artists.
Rovás is not a style, not a school, but an attitude. An attitude towards things. Affinity. Devotion. Responsibility.
It does not mean runes, but to record, engrave, remember, recall and remind. Not to forget, not to understate. To utter or write, to paint, to shape, to format, to draw. It is a signal to the insecure that fellows are here ... and they are no strangers!
The title of the exhibition is as follows: Horror Vacui - meaning "Fear of Emptiness", perhaps more precisely: fear of Nothingness.
Fear of Nothingness ... The human mind seeks the meaning of life, the secrets of the origin and end of life, fearing that there is only Nothing after the Something. It fills the incomprehensible with assumptions. It fills the void. It imagines the unthinkable. The existence of the existing is penetrated by the possibility of non-existence, their reality is destroyed from within by the Void and they live in the constant threat of annihilation, says Thomas Aquinas... What if "I disappear suddenly like a wild trail in a forest ..." ?!-
These are reflections on the fear that Kierkegaard says is inherent to freedom, as it comes from nowhere and goes into nothingness ...-
But how does a "something" emerge from "nothing"?
The exhibition features 27 questions of the seeking intellect, answered by further questions.
Finally, I would like express the definition from which the group feeds, along which it operates. Rovás prefers free art and free creativity, uninfluenced by the fashionable trends or the lack of expertise. Free art means unlimited, independent creativity, which doesn′t hide behind the label of "contemporary art" and doesn′t try to find an alibi in subjectivism.
Ladies and gentlemen! Hereby I declare the exhibition open. I am confident that it will be an unforgettable experience. Thank you for your attention!
