The Július Koller Society

28/05/2026

🎉 Born on May 28, 1939 in Piešťany. Július Koller. An artist whose body of work consistently reveals new layers, fosters critical intergenerational dialogue, and challenges established perspectives. As a non-profit association, we are glad to continue preserving, researching, developing and contextualizing Július Koller's legacy.

Currently on view: Exhibition Július Koller: Univerzálny Fantastický Otáznik (U.F.O.) at Galerie Martin Janda in Vienna until July 4, 2026.

We are deeply grateful to all our supporters, institutional partners, and fellow art enthusiasts, whose ongoing engagement allows us to keep Július Koller’s work active and accessible for next generation.

photo: Kvetoslava Fulierová, U.F.O.-naut J.K. (U.F.O), 1982

30/04/2026

Over the past two weeks, we have hosted a series of inspiring professional events. 🌐

🖇️In collaboration with the Department of Theory and History of Art, the Department of Sculpture, Object, Installation, and the Performance Laboratory, we organized a lecture and workshop featuring 𝙁𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙝 𝙘𝙪𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙤𝙧 𝙋𝙞𝙚𝙧𝙧𝙚 𝘽𝙖𝙡-𝘽𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙘. The author presented his extensive curatorial practice in the field of performance art and, in collaboration with our students, created a Bratislava-based adaptation of the script 𝘾𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙀𝙭𝙝𝙞𝙗𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙖 𝙎𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙡𝙚 𝘽𝙤𝙙𝙮. Both events has been made possible by generous support from Kontakt Collection Vienna and Július Koller Society.

🖇️Our program was further enriched by a visit to the Ludwig Museum in Budapest for the opening of the exhibition 𝙄𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙀𝙣𝙙 𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙒𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝘽𝙚 𝙉𝙤 𝙀𝙣𝙙, which runs until September 20th. This exhibition project, curated by Katarína Bajcurová and Lucia Gregorová Stach, presents works of the Slovak Neo-Avant-Garde and contemporary art from the Art Fond Collection, including seminal works by Július Koller.

🖇️In collaboration with Sabeth Buchmann, Pierre Bal-Blanc, Kathrin Rhomberg (Kontakt Collection), and the University of Vienna, Daniel Grúň presented a paper titled "𝙎𝙚𝙡𝙛-𝙝𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙘𝙞𝙯𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣, 𝙖𝙧𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙘 𝙥𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙘𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙅. 𝙆𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙧 as part of the Study Day: "𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘼𝙥𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙋𝙚𝙧𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝘼𝙧𝙩" program.

We look forward to many more exciting projects ahead.

1–3 Workshop Collective Exhibition for a Single Body with Pierre Bal-Blanc, AFAD, Bratislava
4–5 Exhibition In the End There Will Be No End, Ludwig Museum, Budapest
6–7 Lecture by Daniel Grúň titled "Self-historicization, archive and artistic practice of Július Koller", Vienna

15/04/2026

We are highlighting a selection of new articles that delve deeper into Július Koller’s extensive practice. Explore curated list of recent features below:

📁Planetárna postkomunikácia Júliusa Kollera. K rekonštrukcii umelcovho inter-archívu by Daniel Grúň in: Flash Art, s. 33–36, no. 79, vol. XVIII, 2026.

Daniel Grúň's study examines the reconstruction of the international communication networks of Slovak conceptual artist Július Koller. Drawing on archival materials, it investigates his active participation in the Mail Art movement, his creation of text cards and the U.F.O. series, through which Koller built an alternative artistic infrastructure despite the constraints of normalisation-era Czechoslovakia. The article highlights the artist's foreign contacts and exhibition projects that have remained insufficiently documented to date.

📁Repositioning Július Koller’s More (1963–1964): Conceptualism, Region and Critical Art History by Daniel Grúň in: UMĚNÍ 4 ART, s. 388–400, č. LXXIII, 2025.

This study focuses on the pivotal work More (1964) through the lens of two methodological perspectives. Beyond proposing potential interpretations of the work, it re-evaluates the concept of conceptualism within both local and global contexts. Through the prism of Koller’s practice, the article highlights divergent approaches to the historiography of art after 1945.

📁Július Koller : : : Inverse Situationism by Miško Šuvaković in ARS, s. 159–171, no. 2, vol. 58, 2025.

Inverse Situationism study provides a critical analysis of Július Koller’s post-media practice within the context of the Slovak and international Neo-Avant-Garde. It focuses on the concept of 'Inverse Situationism' and the integration of art into everyday life through his Anti-Happenings and the U.F.O. project. The article examines the singular characteristics of Koller’s work during the transition from socialism to capitalism.

Flash Art Czech & Slovak Edition
Daniel Grúň

07/04/2026

C͎o͎l͎l͎e͎c͎t͎i͎v͎e͎ ͎E͎x͎h͎i͎b͎i͎t͎i͎o͎n͎ ͎f͎o͎r͎ ͎a͎ ͎S͎i͎n͎g͎l͎e͎ ͎B͎o͎d͎y͎ ͎b͎y͎ ͎P͎i͎e͎r͎r͎e͎ ͎B͎a͎l͎-͎B͎l͎a͎n͎c͎

Studio of Free Sculpture (Drotárska cesta 44)
16. 4. 2026 (Lecture) / 21. 4. 2026 (Workshop)

Kolektívna výstava pre jedno telo je performatívny scenár vytvorený v roku 2015 kurátorom Pierrom Bal-Blanc, v ktorom sa telo stáva miestom kolektívnej prezentácie. Účastníci tu prispievajú gestami alebo akciami priradenými ku konkrétnym častiam tela, čím ho premieňajú na živý výstavný priestor.

V roku 2017 bola partitúra za účasti vybraných umelcov upravená a počas dvoch mesiacov realizovaná v Kasseli a Aténach v rámci podujatia documenta 14. Následne viedenská Kontakt Collection iniciovala vznik pozmenenej verzie, ktorá reflektovala diela zo zbierky prepojené s avantgardnými hnutiami východnej Európy. V novembri 2019 bola predstavená na festivale Playground v Leuvene a neskôr v Lisabone a Bukurešti.

🚶🏼 Bratislavská verzia bude v rámci workshopu vyzývať svojich účastníkov, aby na základe príspevkov jednotlivých členov vytvorili novú adaptáciu partitúry.

Prednášku a workshop organizuje Katedra teórie a dejín umenia, Katedra sochy, objektu, inštalácie a Laboratórium performancie. Obe podujatia sa mohli uskutočniť vďaka podpore Kontakt Collection Vienna a Július Koller Society.

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Lecture and workshop are organized by the Departmet of Theory and History of Art, Department Sculpture, object, installation and Laborarory of Performance. Both events has been made possible by generous support from Kontakt Collection Vienna and Július Koller Society.

photos:
1 — Pierre Bal-Blanc by Marianne Maric, 2019
2— Documenta 14, 2017

12/12/2025

Rok 2025 bol pre nás iný ako predošlé. Viac sme sa zamerali na medzinárodnú prezentáciu. Pripravili sme samostatnú výstavu Júliusa Kollera v acb galérii v Budapešti The Sinusoid of (Mis)Understanding (04.07.—15.08. 2025). Diela z nášho archívu boli prezentované vo Vancouver Artgallery na rozsiahlej výstave Multiple Realities: Experimental Art in the Eastern Bloc, 1960s–1980s (13.12. 2024—21.4. 2025), na výstave The Cynics Republic - Plac Defilad (10.05–08.06. 2025) v Múzeu moderného umenia vo Varšave a v Centre súčasného umenia Amant v New Yorku na výstave On Education (20.03.—17.8. 2025). V súčasnosti je možné dielo Juliusa Kollera vidieť v priestoroch Museum der Moderne v Salzburgu, v rámci výstavy Julius Koller. U.F.O.-naut J.K., ktorá potrvá do 14. 6. 2026.

Pripravujeme pre vás zaujímavý program na budúci rok a rozbiehame nové spolupráce.

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The year 2025 was different for us than the previous ones. We focused more on international presentation. We prepared a solo exhibition of Július Koller at acb Gallery in Budapest, The Sinusoid of (Mis)Understanding (04.07—15.08. 2025). Works from our archive were shown at the Vancouver Art Gallery as part of the extensive exhibition Multiple Realities: Experimental Art in the Eastern Bloc, 1960s–1980s (13.12. 2024—21.4. 2025), at The Cynics Republic – Plac Defilad (10.05—08.06. 2025) at the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw, and at Amant, Center for Contemporary Art in New York, in the exhibition On Education (20.03—17.08. 2025). At present, Julius Koller’s work can be seen at the Museum der Moderne in Salzburg, as part of the exhibition Julius Koller. U.F.O.-naut J.K., which runs until June 14, 2026.

We are preparing an exciting program for you for next year and launching new collaborations.

photo:
Július Koller, Ping-Pong Monument (Project) 3 U.F.O. (detail), 1971

15/11/2025

17. november 1989 je pre nás symbolický medzník. Chceme si pripomínať udalosti, kedy občania Československa prejavili odvahu bojovať o svoju slobodu.

Trvalo to dlhých pätnásť rokov, kým Július Koller mohol opäť pripraviť samostatnú výstavu. Udialo sa to práve tento deň v Obvodnom kultúrnom a spoločenskom stredisku Bratislava III. Spoločne s koncertom Jaroslava Filipa a Dušana Valúcha výstavu v cykle Dotyky a spojenia zorganizovali Zuzana Bartošová a Ladislav Snopko. Ďakujeme im za ich dlhoročnú zanietenú prácu pre kultúru na Slovensku.
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17 November 1989 is a symbolic milestone for us. We want to commemorate the events when the citizens of Czechoslovakia showed the courage to fight for their freedom.

It took a long fifteen years before Július Koller was able to present a solo exhibition again. This happened on this very day at the District Cultural and Social Centre Bratislava III. Together with a concert by Jaroslav Filip and Dušan Valúch, the exhibition—part of the Touches and Connections series—was organized by Zuzana Bartošová and Ladislav Snopko. We thank them for their many years of dedicated work for culture in Slovakia.

photos:
1 — Július Koller, Flying Cultural Situation (U.F.O.), 1983
2–4 — Archive: JKS

22/07/2025

02/07/2025

We warmly invite you to the opening of a two-part exhibition at acb Gallery in Budapest:

🎨 Július Koller: The Sinusoid of (Mis)Understanding – solo exhibition
🤝 My U.F.O.s, Your U.F.O.s – a group exhibition featuring Július Koller alongside a selection of Hungarian artists of his generation, complemented by his correspondence with selected fellow artists

🗓 Opening: July 3, 2025, at 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
📍 acb Gallery, Budapest
📅 Exhibition dates: July 3 – August 15, 2025

The exhibitions offer a unique insight into Koller as a solo artist, as well as into his connections with the regional art scene through dialogue, archives, and generational parallels. For more info: https://acbgaleria.hu/en/exhibitions/a_felre_ertes_szinuszgorbeje

The shows are realised in collaboration with The Július Koller Society, Bratislava.

Július Koller (1939–2007) a háború utáni avantgárd egyik kultikus alakja volt, aki a kommunista Csehszlovákia peremén, a hivatalos művészeti élettől távol alkotta meg életművét. Az 1990-es évektől kezdve művészete nemzetközi szinten is jelentős hatást gyakorolt a konceptuá.....

19/02/2025

We entered 2025 with slight shifts in our priorities and goals. After several years of exhibition activities, we have decided to focus primarily on archival work while occasionally engaging in collaborative projects beyond the former JKS premises. One such project is the ongoing exhibition at Galéria mesta Bratislavy, with hopefully more to come—we’ll keep you posted.

In the meantime, we continue to lend Koller’s artworks, so feel free to contact us via email or phone to arrange a consultation. Please note that from now on, we are available at our Nová Cvernovka address by appointment only.

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Do roka 2025 sme vstúpili s drobnými zmenami v prioritách a cieľoch. Po niekoľkoročnej výstavnej štafete sme sa rozhodli presunúť našu pozornosť na archívnu prácu a kolaboratívne projekty mimo doterajšie priestory JKS. Jedným z takýchto projektov je aj stále prebiehajúca výstava v Galéria mesta Bratislavy. Ďalšie projekty pripravujeme a budeme vás o nich včas informovať.

V prípade zapožičania diel alebo konzultácie nás neváhajte kontaktovať emailom alebo telefonicky. Na adrese v Novej Cvernovke nás po novom nájdete len vo vopred dohodnutom termíne.

18/02/2025