Permanent Exhibition — Comedy of the Spirit

Opening: June 13, 2025, 10:00 AM Curators: Štefánia Ďuricová, Miroslav Kleban Hall A + B, Hlavná 27, Košice

The new permanent exhibition of the East Slovak Gallery is the culmination of more than seventy years of systematic collecting and scientific-research activity of the institution. As a vibrant cultural space, we reflect on current societal challenges, while also turning to our cultural heritage, with the aim of opening new dialogues about identity, spirituality, and the shared history of the Central European region.

The ideological core of the exhibition is the exceptional dramatic work Comedy of the Spirit, written in 1925 by Anton Jasusch – a painter, visionary, and important representative of Košice Modernism. The play, originally written in Hungarian and composed in three acts, was never staged; its premiere at the Slovak National Theatre was prevented by the political-ideological circumstances of the time. Jasusch's literary work – thoughtful, symbolic, at times even visionarily surrealistic – offers a unique key to reading his paintings.

The Comedy of the Spirit exhibition therefore does not refer to art history in a traditional chronological framework. Instead, it is curated as a thematic and visual interpretation of Jasusch's play, as a dramatic-spiritual journey divided into nine thematic sections. Each of them opens up a different level of Jasusch's philosophy: from the spiritual world, through cosmic visions, social criticism, intimate identity, to apocalyptic destruction and spiritual rebirth.

The exhibition works exclusively with works from the collection of the East Slovak Gallery. Large-format symbolic compositions play a dominant role, embodying the fundamental themes of human existence – birth, life, death, mysticism, and transformation. Jasusch's paintings here act as artistic scores, in which expressive gesture and philosophical content create a unique space between painting and literature.

Comedy of the Spirit invites reflection, not only on the history of fine art, but also on the very direction of the society in which we live. The exhibited works, along with Jasusch's dramatic blueprint, open up questions that remain relevant even after almost a century: Where is the line between progress and decline? How does the crisis of values affect the spiritual and moral state of the individual? And what role does art play in times of social tension?

The exhibition points out that art is not only an aesthetic experience, but also a critical tool of knowledge, capable of articulating what the language of society often suppresses: silence, uncertainty, vulnerability, but also hope. Jasusch's visionary perspective reminds us that every culture that loses the ability of self-reflection risks stagnation and decay.

In the context of today's reality – environmental crisis, polarization, and the search for identity, Comedy of the Spirit offers a space for contemplating the values on which we want to build the future. The exhibition is an invitation to perceive cultural heritage not as a static past, but as a living foundation for a creative and responsible dialogue about the direction of our society.

Reconstruction of premises and preparation of the permanent exhibition Comedy of the Spirit:

The realization of the permanent exhibition was supported by public funds from the Art Support Fund, and the exhibition spaces were reconstructed with financial support from the Košice Self-Governing Region.