Slovak Painting Debuts at Gallerie d'Italia in Milan

Thirty vibrant, medium-to-large contemporary paintings from the VÚB Foundation's collection, acquired over a decade through the Mal'ba prize, are now on view at Gallerie d'Italia in Milan. The exhibition, titled 'Slovenska. New Generation Mal'ba 2006-2015,' presents works by Slovak artists under 35, curated by Nina Gažovičová. It is part of the 'Cantiere del '900' section, alongside 20th-century Italian masters from the Intesa Sanpaolo collection. VÚB Banka, part of Intesa Sanpaolo Group in Slovakia, has been building its art collection since 2006, when the Mal'ba competition launched. The 11th edition will open October 7 at Nedbalka Gallery in Bratislava. Initially dominated by Bratislava's painting school—half of the awarded works came from Csudai's studio—the competition has broadened, with criteria shifting from purely aesthetic and calligraphic painting to more diverse approaches. The exhibition features artists such as Andrej Dubravsky, Ivona Žirkova, Viliam Slaminka, Jarmila Sabova Dzuppova, Matej Fabian, Juraj Florek, and Alexandra Fazekasova. The show runs until October 23, 2016, at Gallerie d'Italia, Piazza della Scala 6, Milan.