AFI is pleased to feature the work of Slovakian illustrator, graphic artist, and printmaker, Jozef Gl’aba, in Early Warning: The Politicization of Arts and Culture in Slovakia. His intricate series of works highlight the divisive and destructive impact of ethno-nationalist leadership on culture and society.
Gl’aba is a multidisciplinary artist, mainly engaging in digital illustration and free graphics, in which he frequently utilizes techniques such as screen printing, gravure printing, and linocut. Through these techniques, Gl’aba criticizes and reflects upon various aspects of life and society with sarcasm and irony, saturating his art with humor that he skillfully weaves into the composition of his work. Gl’aba studied in the Department of Printmaking and Other Media at the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Bratislava (VŠVU). He has also created illustrations for numerous children’s books, editorials, and nonprofit organizations, including Amnesty International Slovakia, Mareena, and Ulita.
Gl’aba collaborated with AFI to create five new works featured throughout Early Warning that depict the destruction of artistic institutions in Slovakia, the suppression of creative expression, and the destabilization of Slovakia’s cultural identity. His illustrations highlighting the ongoing “brain drain” of Slovakian artists and the dismantling of artistic infrastructure in Slovakia expose the fragility of culture under political pressure, reinforcing an urgent message that without vigilance and resistance, artistic and intellectual life in Slovakia are at risk of destruction. In order to give his illustrations a raw, punk energy that enhances the defiant tone of the report, Gl’aba created sketches that he translated into illustrations with linocuts. Gl’aba chose the technique of linocutting, which includes, cutting, carving, printing, and scanning his illustrations, to create a bold, graphic quality that captures the essence of the devastating destruction of culture in Slovakia’s current government.
Additionally, Gl’aba selected images from a larger series he created for his March 2024 exhibition, Ruka k ruke, tehla k tehle (Hand to hand, brick to brick). His works explore the dual nature of brick walls as symbols of both protection and division, emphasizing their ability to create safe spaces while simultaneously isolating individuals, societies, and nations. Motivated by a fear of the cultural and societal consequences of the new government following the most recent parliamentary elections in September 2023, particularly under Martina Šimkovičová’s Ministry of Culture, Gl’aba uses bricks metaphorically to critique the incremental construction of a hostile political environment in Slovakia. Through these walls, his works warn of the dangers of passivity in the face of governmental forces that could lead to authoritarianism, emphasizing the importance of collective action to rebuild a more unified and culturally inclusive society.
To learn more about Jozef Gl’aba’s work, please visit his portfolio at: https://www.behance.net/JozefGlaba/projects
