Opening of the exhibition GROTESK – The Common Language of Eastern Europe with a guided tour
We invite you to the opening of the international exhibition GROTESK – The Common Language of Eastern Europe, which presents the grotesque as a shared language across Eastern Europe. The project brings together photographers from the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, Romania, and Ukraine, highlighting how absurd, tragicomic, and bizarre elements have become an integral part of our cultural expression.
The opening will include a guided tour with the curators, who will introduce the exhibition’s concept and the broader context of the G.R.O.T.E.S.K. project. Developed in collaboration with partner festivals in Prague, Bratislava, Łódź, and Budapest, the project will connect several European cities throughout 2025.
The exhibition reflects the region’s history, its collective experiences, and the humor that has long served as a defense against the uncertainties and upheavals of history. In the spirit of the Kafkaesque tradition, the grotesque offers insight into the absurdity of everyday life and shows that through exaggeration and irony we discover a common language.
The project is co-financed by the governments of Czechia, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia through Visegrad Grants from the International Visegrad Fund. The mission of the fund is to advance ideas for sustainable regional cooperation in Central Europe.
Opening Event · October 4, 2025, 6:00 p.m.
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Artists ·
Hungary · Csilla Klenyánszki, Hórusz Archive (Sándor Kardos), Éva Szombat, László Török, Zsuzsi Uj
Czechia · Oskar Helcel, Dita Pepe, Iren Stehli
Slovakia · Andrej Balco, Martin Kollár, Zuzana Pustaiová, Viktor Šelesták
Poland · Zbigniew Libera, Natalia LL, Rafał Milach, Agnieszka Sejud
Romania · Mihai Barabancea, Tamás Hajdu
Ukraine · Alexander Chekmenev, Julie Poly
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Curators ·
István Virágvölgyi, Capa Center (Budapest, Hungary)
Sára Jeleňová, OFF Bratislava (Bratislava, Slovakia)
Světlana Malina, Fotograf Zone festival (Prague, Czech Republic)
Marta Szymańska, Fotofestiwal (Łódź, Poland)
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Venue · Holešovice Market, public space
(near Hall 24 on the Market Square side)
Bubenské nábř. 306, 170 00, Prague 7 Holešovice
FOTOGRAF ZONE AI FORUM
Fotograf Zone AI FORUM is an innovative international conference focused on connecting AI technology and creativity. It offers a platform for interdisciplinary collaboration and open discussion on the potential of AI in art, technology, and societal development. The event is part of Prague AI Days.
The Society of Dangerous Evidence: Dykes on Bikes 2.0
The exhibition at Fotograf Gallery maps the various forms of lesbian and queer experience in relation to space, language, the body and material structures. It arises from the need to articulate this experience not only as an identity category but as a way of being and functioning in a world often defined by heteronormative and patriarchal frameworks. The artists and collectives represented in the exhibition approach themes such as sexuality, language, cuisine, landscape or technology through specific political, corporeal and cultural strategies. This creates a layered and complex portrayal of what queer positionality can mean in contemporary European context.