Festival sodobne umetnosti Art Stays že od leta 2003 prinaša na Ptuj in v okolico vrhunsko produkcijo domačih ter tujih umetnikov, od najperspektivnejših mladih umetnikov do velikih imen sodobne umetnosti, kot so Ai Weiwei, Yoko Ono, Monira Al Qadiri, Gilbert & George, Jake & Dinos Chapman, Edward Burtynsky, Robin Meier, Ivan Navarro, IRWIN, Allora & Calzadilla, Koen Vanmechelen, Hannah Collins, Ilona Nemeth, Jordi Alcaraz, Perino & Vele, Fernando Prats, Roberto Pugliese, Michele Spanghero, Tiffany Chung, Gigi Scaria, Regina Jose Galindo, Grace Weir in mnogi drugi. Spada med najpomembnejše predstavitve sodobne, predvsem likovne umetnosti v Sloveniji in v tem delu Evrope, ter je postal referenčni dogodek za številne mednarodne galerije, muzeje, fundacije in seveda umetnike.
Since 2003, the Art Stays Festival of Contemporary Art has been bringing to Ptuj and its surroundings top productions by Slovenian and International artists, from the most promising young artists to great names in contemporary art, such as Ai Weiwei, Yoko Ono, Monira Al Qadiri, Gilbert & George, Jake & Dinos Chapman, Edward Burtynsky, Robin Meier, Ivan Navarro, Allora & Calzadilla, Koen Vanmechelen, Hannah Collins, Ilona Nemeth, IRWIN, Jordi Alcaraz, Perino & Vele, Fernando Prats, Roberto Pugliese, Michele Spanghero, Tiffany Chung, Gigi Jose Scaria, Regina Jose Galindo, Grace Weir and many others. It is one of the most important presentations of contemporary, especially fine arts in Slovenia and in this part of Europe, and has become a reference event for many international galleries, museums, foundations and, of course, artists.
> PRETEKLE EDICIJE / PAST EDITIONS
Za vas pripravljamo novo, že 24. edicijo festivala Art Stays z naslovom Hvala za rože (Thank you for the Flowers). Obkrožite na vašem koledarju datume od 9. do 12. julija, ko bo na otvoritvenem vikendu z več kot 30 dogodki Ptuj ponovno likovna prestolnica Slovenije. Vabljeni!
We are getting ready to welcome you to the 24th edition of the Art Stays festival, entitled Thank you for the Flowers. Mark your calendars for July 9–12, when Ptuj will once again become the art capital of Slovenia with more than 30 events during the opening weekend. You are cordially invited!
»Hvala za rože.« Kako pogosto se ta stavek izreče z nasmehom, ki morda ni povsem iskren? Kako pogosto gre za vljudno gesto, ki skriva več, kot dejansko pove? Letošnja, 24. izdaja festivala Art Stays jemlje ta kratek stavek kot izhodišče: cinično in ironično. Odprt prostor, zastavljeno vprašanje, morda včasih bolj skozi govorico telesa kot skozi besede, včasih izraženo z nič več kot preprostim, rahlim dvigom obrvi.
Rože so darilo. Rože so izgovor. Rože so tudi alibi. Je okras, ki prekriva razpoke, tako notranje kot zunanje. Gestus prijaznosti, ki včasih pride prepozno. V sodobnem svetu, polnem lepih gest, ki pa so vse bolj brez vsebine, »hvala za rože« zveni kot odgovor na nekaj, kar ni bilo nikoli zares naslovljeno. Festival Art Stays raziskuje prav to napetost med videzom in resničnostjo, med simboličnim in konkretnim, med iskrenostjo in reprezentacijo.
Umetniki, predstavljeni v tej izdaji, se podajajo v svet ironije, absurda in subtilnega humorja. Njihova dela razkrivajo mehanizme vsakdanjih odnosov – osebnih, družbenih in političnih –, v katerih so gesti pogosto prazne, a hkrati nujne. S fotografijami, instalacijami, performansi, videi in drugimi sodobnimi umetniškimi praksami se odpira prostor, v katerem rože ne dišijo več le po lepoti, ampak morda vse bolj po tišini, negotovosti in nelagodju.
»Hvala za rože« torej ni zahvala, ampak odprta situacija. Kaj dejansko sprejmemo, ko sprejmemo darilo? O čem molčimo, ko se zahvalimo? In koliko resnice se lahko skriva v enem samem, na videz nedolžnem stavku?
Festival Art Stays, ki poteka že 24. leto, vabi obiskovalce, naj pogledajo pod površino, naj ne gledajo le cvetja, ampak naj v tej subtilni ironiji prepoznajo iskrico resnice.
“Thank you for the flowers.” How often is this phrase uttered with a smile that perhaps isn’t quite genuine? How often is it a polite gesture that hides more than it actually says? This year’s 24th edition of the Art Stays festival takes this brief phrase as its starting point: cynical and ironic. An open space, a question posed, perhaps at times more through body language than through words, sometimes expressed by nothing more than a simple, slight raising of the eyebrows.
Flowers are a gift. Flowers are an excuse. Flowers are also an alibi. They are a decoration that covers cracks, both internal and external. A gesture of kindness that sometimes comes too late. In the contemporary world, full of beautiful gestures that are, however, increasingly devoid of substance, ‘thank you for the flowers’ sounds like a response to something that has never really been addressed. The Art Stays festival explores precisely this tension between appearance and reality, between the symbolic and the concrete, between sincerity and representation.
The artists featured in this edition venture into the realms of irony, the absurd and subtle humour. Their works lay bare the mechanisms of everyday relationships – personal, social and political – where gestures are often empty, yet at the same time necessary. Through photographs, installations, performances, videos and other contemporary artistic practices, a space is opened up in which flowers no longer smell only of beauty, but perhaps, increasingly, of silence, suspension and unease.
Thank you for the Flowers’ is therefore not a thank you, but an open-ended situation. What do we actually accept when we accept a gift? What do we remain silent about when we say thank you? And how much truth can be hidden in a single, seemingly innocent phrase?
The Art Stays Festival, now in its 24th edition, invites visitors to look beyond the surface, to cast a glance not only at the flowers, but to recognise in that subtle irony a spark of truth.
