Hans Sedlmayr (1896–1984): Structural Approach and Pre-Modern Values

The prevailing part of art historians, critics and theoreticians from the mid-1950s even until today feels related to the means of expression of the modernist art trends from the last decade of 19th c. until the end of 1960-s. Modernism has become a sacred text, whose complexity should be interpreted, but not criticized. Sedlmayr’s conception of art is built on moral, religious, aesthetic and political grounds, which are the very reason for the actuality of his works – both in the specialized sphere of art history and in the wider public debate on values. That is why I will analyse his structural approach mainly in relation to his anti-modern conception of art. This is the task of this study. Sedlmayr’s effort to turn art history into a “strict science” is an independent part of his scientific pursuit; it is in relation, but is not subordinate to his conception of modern art. Those publications of his are discussed but only in the specialized literature on history of the methods in humanities, while his conception against modern art acquires an exceptional popularity. Because of that reason his theoretic contribution to the study of art remains in a penumbra. I argue that Sedlmayr’s conception has the following coinciding points with the official understanding of art in the time of socialism: – A denial to estimate art with aesthetic criteria, which the ideologists of socialist realism define as formalism, and Sedlmayr as aesthetism; – In socialism art should represent a positive ideal; Sedlmayr calls this ideal “human measure”; – Art should habituate to morals; – A conviction that the modern art from the end of 19th c. on is decadent; – A criticism against the “dehumanization” of art.

The Model of the Universe, Encoded in the Thracian Cult Spaces, in the Context of Modern Cosmogonic Concepts

Accepting the thesis that the Thracian cult buildings under a mound can be interpreted as models of the universe, time and space, man and his ideas of harmony (A. Fol, V. Fol, M. Ruseva), in this article I further develop this thesis, while exploring it, placed in the context of modern concepts and theories in the field of physics, as well as taking into account the place of religions and other sciences in the construction of a comprehensive modern cosmogonic model. At the same time, I consider and analyse the extent to which such searches are a topic in modern sacred architecture.

Judson Memorial Church and the intersections between happening and dancing

The article examines a short excerpt from the New York scene, namely the period around 1959–1963 in the context of the environment, happening, dance pieces and draws attention to the leading influences of Marcel Duchamp, John Cage, and Merce Cunningham. We are focusing on the gravitating artists’ circles around the Judson Memorial Church and some of their distinct practices and centers. Among the many, we consider the Reuben Gallery, Judson Gallery, Judson Dance Theater, and artists such as Allan Kaprow, Claes Oldenburg, Robert Morris, Simon Forti, Carolee Schneemann, Robert Rauschenberg. The text does not aim to provide a complete overview of Judson Dance Theater or the artists` practices, but rather to consider some of their common influences in their period of formation. We will bring the environment and the happening under their contradictions and variability and will consider the first generation of dance reformers at Judson Dance Theater as an influential force for involving visual artists in intermediate zones.

Are the Performances Broadcast Online Theatrical Performances? (Once Again on the Structural Differences Between the Stage and the Screen)

This article is an attempt to bring principled clarity to the recent disputes over the nature of theatrical art on the occasion of the general closure of the theatres after March 2020 (as an anti-epidemic measure in the COVID-19 crisis) and the alternative broadcasts of online performances. For a number of theoretical and practical reasons, and based on various examples, we maintain the understanding that with each shooting and broadcasting of a theatrical production a process of approaching the cinema begins – the erasure of its own theatrical quality occurs at the beginning of the process.

Orthodox and Contemporary Techniques at Constructing of the Monument. Image, Heroics, Plot

Examining the monument from a visual and conceptual point of view is an interesting but not easy task. The motivations for the construction of a monumental work of a memorial nature can be many and varied. Moreover, it is possible that there are connections between the various media for visual expression in the field of art and the specifics of the sculptural genre. Photography, painting, drawing and literature build images that form the basis for the creation of sculpture, both monumental and easel.

Aneta Dragushanu – The Perusal of the Myth of the Eternal Returning

The article presents a personal, chamber reading of fragments of interviews, stories, paintings, memories of the artist Aneta Dragushanu and her attitude towards man and art. A personal touch to familiar theories related to the eternal gaze, search and returning and their manifestation in the works of the author. There is no doubt that every work of Dragushanu, sketch, drawing, and canvas is its way to share with us, a way to seek the human in of the day. We find this pursuit and search for truth in the attitude towards models as well. The search is not for the ideal, perfect image, but for the living person. The one she knows, without posture and intent, the one she has met, talked to, realized. This insight into seemingly insignificant things, into the small details of everyday life, of the purity of human communication is its pursuit of the impermanent, the eternal.

Filigrane – Innovation of the European Middle Ages with Possessive and Aesthetic Character

The origin and use of filigrane in its genesis from the end of the 13th century has the purely utilitarian function of a distinctive mark, inherited from wool workshops, which put the “brand” of the manufacturer on their products. The significance of the watermark (filigrane), originally emblematic of medieval Italian paper production, is not limited to its innovative technological nature, which clearly distinguishes it from the Eastern method of making paper, but it emphasizes creative maturity and craftsmanship independence, that transform a simple logo in a symbol with exquisite-applied qualities. The initial vision of the filigrane image, characterized by a rougher geometric appearance, subsequently reflects imagery close to medieval man, through zoomorphic, floral, human-like or tools drawing, to purely informative texts today. The development of filigrane modifies its prototype from an indicative mark to the recognition of possession in a simbol guaranteeing quality.

Painting as a continuous script. Protocols for an idea

Every knowledge, every understanding or attempt to arrange the world usually carries within it a certain degree of change, of recreation. Given the general nature of reality, the artist’s accumulated subjective experience is the only possible guide, landmark, or main source of knowledge. An idea is the notion of some thing initself. The ideas and thinking of the world in metaphors make the connection between art and reality, between the integral and the multiple, but also between the real and the imaginary. The artistic effort is reduced to the search for ways to translate, to draw, to express things through forms, giving them both universal validity and individuality. The text protocols a subjective/author’s project from the idea to the realization.