Július Koller, UFOlogist, sceptic and game-player, is considered the key figure in 20th century Slovak art. The Ganek Gallery (Galéria Ganku) is a book devoted to reconstructing one of his most important artistic projects. This legendary gallery was situated on a mountain peak, highly regarded by climbers, in the High Tatra range. Although no works were ever actually displayed there, its aim was to communicate thoughts and ideas which would not otherwise have found their place in art.
The project evolved through many years of persevering work, with the community of its adherents meeting in private apartments in Bratislava. This book about the Ganek Gallery emerged from dialogue with participants, as a supplementary catalogue of Koller’s fictive institution. It brings together photographs, magazine cut-outs, collages, drawings and text records from many private and public sources. The print media and the culture of high mountain tourism in Czechoslovakia in the 1970s and ’80s are explored in all their complexity. Light is thrown upon an artist whose working methods remain inspirational right up to the present day.
This publication is available at ERSTE Foundation Library.
