Maria Bartuszová
(Book - Regular Print)

Published on the occasion of the exhibition held at Tate Modern, London, 20 September 2022 to 16 April 2023

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Bringing together many works rarely exhibited before in the UK, this survey exhibition will highlight the abstract sculptures of Prague-born Slovak artist Maria Bartuszov̀. Bartuszov̀ worked over three decades in Koaice, the second-largest city in Slovakia. She created around 500 sculptures, from small organic forms to commissions for public spaces as well as works in the landscape, despite restrictions on her artistic life during this period. The exhibition starts in the 1960s, when Bartuszov̀ experimented using her own distinctive method of casting plaster by hand. Inspired by playing with her young daughter, she created abstract shapes by pouring plaster into rubber balloons - her signature material was white plaster, giving the sculptures a fragile quality. She shaped the sculptures by pushing, pulling, or submerging them into water, creating unique and distinct shapes. Some suggest raindrops, seeds or eggs, others the human body. Later, she allowed the balloons to burst, creating delicate works similar to cocoons or nests. In the 1980s, Bartuszov̀ frequently photographed her works outdoors to emphasise their close ties to nature. The exhibition will also include a selection of these striking images. --Gallery website