Difference between revisions of "Category:Forma Viva Collection"
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| − | Forma Viva | + | Forma Viva is an international sculptors meeting which first took place in 1961 and has been continuously going on up to this day. A rather special enterprise, it is primarily defined by its dedication to outdoor creation and by the resultant works being used as public monuments. The name, which in Latin stands for ''living form'', consequently also denotes the resultant open-air sculpture collections. They are presented in either specially designated parks or spread across certain urban regions. |
| − | + | Forma Viva is supposedly the oldest still active sculptors symposium in the world and quite possibly the only one that connects worksites a couple of hundred kilometres apart. | |
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| + | The Forma Viva collections are located at roughly the four corners of Slovenia – in [[Forma Viva Open Air Sculpture Collection, Maribor|Maribor]] (the main city in the Eastern part of Slovenia), in [[Forma Viva Open Air Stone Sculpture Collection, Seča|Seča]] (a peninsula near the coastal town of Portorož), in [[Forma Viva Open Air Wood Sculpture Collection, Kostanjevica na Krki|Kostanjevica na Krki]] (a small island town located on the river Krka) and in [[Forma Viva Open Air Steel Sculpture Collection, Ravne na Koroškem|Ravne na Koroškem]] (the central town of the Koroška region). While the ones in Seča and Kostanjevica are more or less limited to their respective parks, the Maribor collection is scattered across the whole of the city. The Ravne na Koroškem collection is distinctively regional and its steel sculptures grace a number of towns in the area. | ||
{{Wide Image|Mojca Smerdu 1983 Cvet Photo Damjan Svarc.jpg}} | {{Wide Image|Mojca Smerdu 1983 Cvet Photo Damjan Svarc.jpg}} | ||
| − | ==Background== | + | ==Background and concept== |
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| − | + | Forma Viva was modelled after a Bildhauersymposion St. Margarethen, first held in the quarry at Sankt Margarethen in 1959 and organised by Karl Prantl. It was attended by the sculptor [[Janez Lenassi]] and and a year later also [[Jakob Savinšek]], both of whom were greatly inspired by it. They formulated an idea of an annual international sculptor meeting focused on the open-air creation of monumental works ''in situ''. The name they've coined alluded to the meeting as a means of exploring sculpture in ever new and changing directions. | |
| + | A basic premise of the project lies in creating public sculptures. The organiser takes care of the material, tools and provides for the artists while in exchange they donate their works to the collections. In the pioneer years the symposium invited about two dozens of artists to create here. It was a distinctively social and meeting oriented as the artists were encouraged to visit each other between the initial two sites. | ||
| + | |||
| + | A very distinctive specific of Forma Viva since its inception is its focus on specific materials being used at a particular site, bound to have have some sort of a connection to the region. | ||
==A brief history== | ==A brief history== | ||
| − | The first two | + | The first two symposium sites were Seča near Portorož (utilising limestone) and Kostanjevica na Krki (oak wood). Two other venues included later were Ravne na Koroškem (1964, steel) and Maribor (1967, reinforced concrete). Other locations proposed during that time were Jesenice (iron), Ptuj (aluminium or plastic) and Radenci (clay). |
| − | At first, the founders held annual symposia in both Portoroz and Kostanjevica but, for economic reasons, this had to be curtailed after a few years. Portorož and Kostanjevica started to hold the symposia alternately, each every two years. The Maribor symposium happened a bit more sporadically | + | At first, the founders held annual symposia in both Portoroz and Kostanjevica but, for economic reasons, this had to be curtailed after a few years. Portorož and Kostanjevica started to hold the symposia alternately, each every two years. The Maribor symposium happened a bit more sporadically between 1967 and 1986 (), while the Ravne one lasted till 1989 and got resurrected in 2008. Between 1988 and 1998 there was no co-ordination between the symposia in Seca and those in Kostanjevica. The year 1991 marked an end of an era as Seča remained the only one of the four that maintained continuity, though on a biennial nature. Recent years have seen a resurgence of Forma Viva activities, though they still haven't retained its former ambitiousness. |
In the past decades a few other Forma Viva's has risen, most notably in zrece and Makole. They were done independently as compared to the initial four, which share a overarching organisational entity. The Zrece Forma Viva began to take shape in mid-1970s and and the collection was growing until 1989. It is a result of cooperation between the artist Vasilij Cetkovic and Marjan Osole, who was the managing director of the tools company Unior at that time. Built on the the blacksmith tradition of the area, they created eight pieces made from iron, steel and artificial grindstones. The sculptures were all made from materials available locally. | In the past decades a few other Forma Viva's has risen, most notably in zrece and Makole. They were done independently as compared to the initial four, which share a overarching organisational entity. The Zrece Forma Viva began to take shape in mid-1970s and and the collection was growing until 1989. It is a result of cooperation between the artist Vasilij Cetkovic and Marjan Osole, who was the managing director of the tools company Unior at that time. Built on the the blacksmith tradition of the area, they created eight pieces made from iron, steel and artificial grindstones. The sculptures were all made from materials available locally. | ||
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==The works== | ==The works== | ||
| − | + | In accordance with the natural resources of individual sites, the symposium in Kostanjevica na Krki focuses on sculpting oak wood (there is only one piece made of some other material, yet set in a living tree), Seca near Portorož on the hard and resistant bright Istrian limestone (among other things it is used for the fountains in Venice), Ravne na Koroškem on metal (where the steel making plant intiated and finaced the project), and Maribor on reinforced concrete (which corresponded with the burgeoning building of concrete neighbourhoods, with the concrete also provded by one of the local companies, called Stavbar). | |
The materials also correspond to the spatial logics, with the stone and wooden collections comprising a more traditional exhibitions and the concrete and steel ones being integrated into the urban fabric. More then 100 sculptures are on display in natural environment nearby art museum/former cistercian monastery in Kostanjevica na Krki (with some pieces, like the constructivist sculpture by Vjenceslav Richter (HR), also set at various rad junctures in the area). From their symposia, the curators of the Coastal Galleries at Piran, who are in charge of the park, collected over 300 pieces of sculpture for the park at Portorož alone. These are now distributed around the several parks on the Slovenian coast, as originally planned over fifty years ago. Also, | The materials also correspond to the spatial logics, with the stone and wooden collections comprising a more traditional exhibitions and the concrete and steel ones being integrated into the urban fabric. More then 100 sculptures are on display in natural environment nearby art museum/former cistercian monastery in Kostanjevica na Krki (with some pieces, like the constructivist sculpture by Vjenceslav Richter (HR), also set at various rad junctures in the area). From their symposia, the curators of the Coastal Galleries at Piran, who are in charge of the park, collected over 300 pieces of sculpture for the park at Portorož alone. These are now distributed around the several parks on the Slovenian coast, as originally planned over fifty years ago. Also, | ||
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==Impact== | ==Impact== | ||
| − | + | Besides serving as notable landmarks, Forma Viva has also been an important way of penetration of contemporary art into the wider community. Works were done with the cooperation of local craftsman and – in the case of Ravne – the workers in the local iron factory. The working sites were also freely accessible and often, especially in the early decades, they were the only time when local living in remote villages people met foreigners (as well, as in 1961 with Bernard Roussil, actually see a chainsaw), especially the ones coming from such faraway countries as Japan (worth mentioning is that Japanese artists represented the biggest part of the artists invited). | |
| − | Besides serving as notable landmarks, Forma Viva has also been an important way of penetration of contemporary art into the wider community. Works were done with the cooperation of local craftsman and – in the case of Ravne – the workers in the local iron factory. The working sites were also freely accessible and often, especially in the early decades, they were the only time when local people met foreigners, especially the ones coming from such faraway countries as Japan (worth mentioning is that Japanese artists represented the biggest part of the artists invited). | ||
At the same time this international symposium was very important for the development of sculptor-ship in Slovenia, bringing contemporary modelling principles amongst the artistic communities. Besides the [[Biennial of Graphic Arts]] and [[Biennial of Design (BIO)]] this has been among the most important institutions of Slovene visual arts. | At the same time this international symposium was very important for the development of sculptor-ship in Slovenia, bringing contemporary modelling principles amongst the artistic communities. Besides the [[Biennial of Graphic Arts]] and [[Biennial of Design (BIO)]] this has been among the most important institutions of Slovene visual arts. | ||
Revision as of 15:37, 8 November 2016
Forma Viva is an international sculptors meeting which first took place in 1961 and has been continuously going on up to this day. A rather special enterprise, it is primarily defined by its dedication to outdoor creation and by the resultant works being used as public monuments. The name, which in Latin stands for living form, consequently also denotes the resultant open-air sculpture collections. They are presented in either specially designated parks or spread across certain urban regions.
Forma Viva is supposedly the oldest still active sculptors symposium in the world and quite possibly the only one that connects worksites a couple of hundred kilometres apart.
The Forma Viva collections are located at roughly the four corners of Slovenia – in Maribor (the main city in the Eastern part of Slovenia), in Seča (a peninsula near the coastal town of Portorož), in Kostanjevica na Krki (a small island town located on the river Krka) and in Ravne na Koroškem (the central town of the Koroška region). While the ones in Seča and Kostanjevica are more or less limited to their respective parks, the Maribor collection is scattered across the whole of the city. The Ravne na Koroškem collection is distinctively regional and its steel sculptures grace a number of towns in the area.
Flower (125 x 175 x 175 cm), reinforced concrete by Mojca Smerdu from 1983, located in front of the Faculty of Economics and Business, part of the Forma Viva Open Air Sculpture Collection, Maribor
Background and concept
Forma Viva was modelled after a Bildhauersymposion St. Margarethen, first held in the quarry at Sankt Margarethen in 1959 and organised by Karl Prantl. It was attended by the sculptor Janez Lenassi and and a year later also Jakob Savinšek, both of whom were greatly inspired by it. They formulated an idea of an annual international sculptor meeting focused on the open-air creation of monumental works in situ. The name they've coined alluded to the meeting as a means of exploring sculpture in ever new and changing directions.
A basic premise of the project lies in creating public sculptures. The organiser takes care of the material, tools and provides for the artists while in exchange they donate their works to the collections. In the pioneer years the symposium invited about two dozens of artists to create here. It was a distinctively social and meeting oriented as the artists were encouraged to visit each other between the initial two sites.
A very distinctive specific of Forma Viva since its inception is its focus on specific materials being used at a particular site, bound to have have some sort of a connection to the region.
A brief history
The first two symposium sites were Seča near Portorož (utilising limestone) and Kostanjevica na Krki (oak wood). Two other venues included later were Ravne na Koroškem (1964, steel) and Maribor (1967, reinforced concrete). Other locations proposed during that time were Jesenice (iron), Ptuj (aluminium or plastic) and Radenci (clay).
At first, the founders held annual symposia in both Portoroz and Kostanjevica but, for economic reasons, this had to be curtailed after a few years. Portorož and Kostanjevica started to hold the symposia alternately, each every two years. The Maribor symposium happened a bit more sporadically between 1967 and 1986 (), while the Ravne one lasted till 1989 and got resurrected in 2008. Between 1988 and 1998 there was no co-ordination between the symposia in Seca and those in Kostanjevica. The year 1991 marked an end of an era as Seča remained the only one of the four that maintained continuity, though on a biennial nature. Recent years have seen a resurgence of Forma Viva activities, though they still haven't retained its former ambitiousness.
In the past decades a few other Forma Viva's has risen, most notably in zrece and Makole. They were done independently as compared to the initial four, which share a overarching organisational entity. The Zrece Forma Viva began to take shape in mid-1970s and and the collection was growing until 1989. It is a result of cooperation between the artist Vasilij Cetkovic and Marjan Osole, who was the managing director of the tools company Unior at that time. Built on the the blacksmith tradition of the area, they created eight pieces made from iron, steel and artificial grindstones. The sculptures were all made from materials available locally.
The works
In accordance with the natural resources of individual sites, the symposium in Kostanjevica na Krki focuses on sculpting oak wood (there is only one piece made of some other material, yet set in a living tree), Seca near Portorož on the hard and resistant bright Istrian limestone (among other things it is used for the fountains in Venice), Ravne na Koroškem on metal (where the steel making plant intiated and finaced the project), and Maribor on reinforced concrete (which corresponded with the burgeoning building of concrete neighbourhoods, with the concrete also provded by one of the local companies, called Stavbar).
The materials also correspond to the spatial logics, with the stone and wooden collections comprising a more traditional exhibitions and the concrete and steel ones being integrated into the urban fabric. More then 100 sculptures are on display in natural environment nearby art museum/former cistercian monastery in Kostanjevica na Krki (with some pieces, like the constructivist sculpture by Vjenceslav Richter (HR), also set at various rad junctures in the area). From their symposia, the curators of the Coastal Galleries at Piran, who are in charge of the park, collected over 300 pieces of sculpture for the park at Portorož alone. These are now distributed around the several parks on the Slovenian coast, as originally planned over fifty years ago. Also,
As the collections are now quite old and mostly rather monumental, they demanded extensive renovating tecniques to be developed. In 2005, the Koroška Regional Museum started to gradually renovate all of the pieces.
Exterior of Božidar Jakac Art Museum in the former Kostanjevica Monastery, Kostanjevica na Krki. In front: a sculpture from the Forma Viva Open Air Wood Sculpture Collection
Impact
Besides serving as notable landmarks, Forma Viva has also been an important way of penetration of contemporary art into the wider community. Works were done with the cooperation of local craftsman and – in the case of Ravne – the workers in the local iron factory. The working sites were also freely accessible and often, especially in the early decades, they were the only time when local living in remote villages people met foreigners (as well, as in 1961 with Bernard Roussil, actually see a chainsaw), especially the ones coming from such faraway countries as Japan (worth mentioning is that Japanese artists represented the biggest part of the artists invited).
At the same time this international symposium was very important for the development of sculptor-ship in Slovenia, bringing contemporary modelling principles amongst the artistic communities. Besides the Biennial of Graphic Arts and Biennial of Design (BIO) this has been among the most important institutions of Slovene visual arts.
External links
- Forma Viva Open Air Wood Sculpture Collection in Kostanjevica na Krki website (in Slovenian)
- Forma Viva, Ravne na Koroškem website (in Slovenian)
- Forma Viva Open Air Stone Sculpture Collection, Seca website (in Slovenian)
- Forma Viva Maribor on the Maribor Art Gallery website (in Slovenian)
- A webpage on the Zreče Forma Viva
- A map of the Maribor Forma Viva pieces (in Slovenian)
- An archival TV news piece about Forma Viva from 1974 (in Slovenian)
- An extensive history of Forma Viva (in Slovenian)
- [1] (in Slovenian)
- A graduation thesis about the history of Forma Viva (in Slovenian)
Articles in category "Forma Viva Collection"
The following 9 pages are in this category, out of 9 total.
F
Media in category "Forma Viva Collection"
The following 38 files are in this category, out of 38 total.
Bozidar Jakac Art Museum 2007 exterior sculpture Photo Borut Peterlin.jpg 2,400 × 1,600; 2.57 MB
Bozidar Jakac Art Museum 2011 Karen Macher Nesta Natural Seesaw.JPG 2,560 × 1,920; 1.55 MB
Bozidar Jakac Art Museum 2014 Agnessa Ivanova Petrova Streams.jpg 5,760 × 3,840; 11.85 MB
Bozidar Jakac Art Museum 2014 Donald Buglass Vessel Photo Tomaz Grdin.jpg 5,538 × 3,692; 9.31 MB
Bozidar Jakac Art Museum 2014 Mitja Stanek QR Code Photo Tomaz Grdin.jpg 5,641 × 3,761; 9.14 MB
Dragica Cadez Lapajne 1973 Photo Damjan Svarc.jpg 1,024 × 768; 205 KB
Forma Viva Open Air Sculpture Collection Maribor 2008 Banzo Matsura.jpg 4,008 × 5,344; 13.95 MB
Forma Viva Open Air Sculpture Collection Maribor 2008 Dragica Cadez Lapajne.jpg 1,417 × 945; 1.9 MB
Forma Viva Open Air Sculpture Collection Maribor 2008 Maciej Szankowski.jpg 5,344 × 4,008; 23.05 MB
Forma Viva Open Air Stone Sculpture Collection Portoroz 2020 Photo Kaja Brezocnik (1).jpg 2,048 × 1,365; 1.53 MB
Forma Viva Open Air Stone Sculpture Collection Portoroz 2020 Photo Kaja Brezocnik (2).jpg 2,048 × 1,368; 1.15 MB
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