ARTIFICIAL HELLS

artificial hells
Alex Mlynárčik, Edgar Degas’ Memorial, 1971
works of art, such as Renoir (Moulin de la Galette [Juniones], Piešťany,
1970) and an equestrian painting by Degas (Edgar Degas’ Memorial, Bratislava,
1971), restaged in the form of a horse race, complete with competitions
and prizes. Eva’s Wedding (Žilina, 1972) was also based on a work of art:
the painting Village Wedding (Dedinská svatba) (1946) by the Slovak artist
L’udovít Fulla (1902– 80), whose seventieth anniversary was being celebrated
that year. After lengthy research, Mlynárčik found a young couple
in Žilina who were planning to marry and offered to organise the entire
ceremony as a theatrical event. Eva Albertová and Tichomir Pišta agreed
to perform as the leading actors in their own wedding, organised over two
acts and eight scenes with a prologue and epilogue; the locations were the
town hall, the church and a restaurant. The fact that the bride’s name
evoked Eve was seen as particularly symbolic, as was the time of year (23
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