Slovak Hungarian book illustration 1990-2005

The present exhibition is a selection from the seven exhibitions of the Illustrated Book Biennial. It presents illustrations that were published in print between 1990 and 2005 (as well as those lent by the authors). Illustrators who have already proven their artistic abilities or who have only been published in magazines and newspapers and who, for unknown reasons, are still ignored by publishers are not included. Éva Vesztróczy asked the question in her aforementioned study: "Can we speak of Hungarian book illustration in Slovakia in a professional sense? Can we demonstrate a specific tradition that affects the illustrators' creative way of thinking, the formal language of their works and, for some reason, lives exclusively within the given minority culture?" She herself gives a negative answer to the question. I think such a phenomenon can only develop in an environment where there is a tangible common cultural-artistic background and cooperation or an art school or trend of a pervasive individuality. This cannot be ordered. Most of the Hungarian illustrators who are making their debut in Slovakia have gained their knowledge at colleges and their excellent teachers in different countries, and their work and outlook have also developed on the border and under the influence of several cultures. The results of the individual artists make it obvious whether their creativity manifests itself in several directions or is directed solely towards illustration. It seems paradoxical, but it is a fact that the more versatile an artist's activity is, the freer and more original their illustrations are. Their individual artistic formal language and Hungarian cultural awareness are important and obvious when illustrating literary works, children's books with poems or fairy tales, and textbooks in Hungarian. The ideal result is created when two creators who are equivalent in their creativity and art and share a common culture meet in a common work. I would ask the question: Will we support our illustrators and book publishers to help them create one of the fundamental pillars of our visual and general culture, or will we give up on this opportunity? Kubička Kucsera Klára