Art enlivens life and soothes the soul, can change how you see the world, can change the world, and – like a good rug – really tie the room together. We were thus thrilled to learn about SLOART a few months ago, which, as we found out in an interview with the owner, Damjan Kosec, aims to connect Slovenian artists with buyers and collectors, using both an online platform and real world gallery. Moreover, aware of the scandals, fraud and other shady practices that have damaged the Slovenian art market in recent years, SLOART focuses on providing the transparency and trust needed to make the scene work in the interests of both artist and buyers.
Related: Ljubljana’s Modern Gallery Highlights Recent Painting in Slovenia
As we noted at the time: It offers works from 1800 to the present day, and even just a passing familiarity with the biggest names of Slovenian art, as seen in the National and Modern Galleries, will make clear what an impressive list of names SLOART offers. Names such as Drago Tršar – the subject of a major retrospective earlier this year, and the man behind many of the most well-known sculptures in Ljubljana; Hinko Smrekar – who did the illustrations for much-loved edition of Martin Krpan; Zoran Mušič – who has his own room at the National; or Rihard Jakopič, the leading Impressionist who founded the school that would go on to become the Academy of Fine Arts at the University of Ljubljana. Beyond the dead there’s the living, with exciting works by current artists with years of work and discovery ahead of them.
Some of the works on offer on the SLOART website
This week the brick-and-mortar version of the project, Galerija Y (with the Y pronounced “epsilon”), at 79 Trubarjeva cesta, the end of the street away from Prešeren Square, opened a new show, Nove Pozicije (New Positions). This showcases works from four of the gallery’s contemporary artists, Tina Dobrajc, Duša Jesih, Arjan Pregl and Sašo Vrabič, which are also for sale. These are paintings, not conceptual art, and so no artists' statements are needed or provided. You can enjoy some of them below, along with pictures from the opening to give a sense of scale, or see them in person until 18 October 2019.
Arjan Pregl, Dan čarovnic, iz serije Karneval (2018). Photo: Galerija Y
Arjan Pregl, Shrek z žago, iz serije Karneval (2018) - detail. Photo: JL Flanner
Sašo Vrabič, Vrh krize 2 (2019). Photo: Galerija Y
Sašo Vrabič, Romeo, (2019) - detail. Photo: JL Flanner
Tina Dobrajc, Enemy of the State II: Desperate Kingdom of Love (2019). Photo: Galerija Y
Tina Dobrajc, Enemy of the State II: Desperate Kingdom of Love (2019) (detail). Photo: JL Flanner
Duša Jesih, Red Cross (2019). Photo: Galerija Y
Duša Jesih, Never Really Here I, (Re)konstrucija), Hommage a Malevich (2017). Photo: JL Flanner
Photo: JL Flanner
Photo: JL Flanner
You can learn more about Galerija Y here, and pay a visit at 79 Trubarjeva cesta, 1000 Ljubljana.
