Forma Viva Open Air Sculpture Collection, Maribor
Background
Initiated by the sculptors Jakob Savinšek and Janez Lenassi, Forma Viva was modelled after a symposium held in St. Margharethen (Austria, 1959). The first two symposia were organised in Kostanjevica na Krki (wood) and in Seča near Portorož (stone) in 1961. Later they were joined by Ravne na Koroškem (1964, steel) and in 1967 also Maribor.
The Maribor manifestation of Forma Viva was some time in coming. In 1967 it was finally realised as the local construction company Stavbar joined in, followed by two other businesses from the branch, Gradis and Konstruktor. All three played a substantial part in the project as they've not only co-financed the project but also lent their technological know-how that was required for the individual pieces.
As compared to the Forma Vivas in Portorož and Kostanjevica na Krki, where most of the pieces are gathered is specially designated parks, the ones in Maribor and Ravne na Koroškem are both spread over the wider urban region. Both of the cities were growing fast in 1960s and the installation of sculptures was meant to humanise their new, concrete dominated urban spaces.
The Forma Viva Symposium in Maribor took place 6 times between 1967–1986, enriching the city with the works by 19 Slovene and international artists coming from Japan (4), Italy (2), Poland (1), Serbia (2), and the USA (3).
Sculptures
The first three participants in the Maribor International Symposium were Tone Lapajne, Lino Tiné, and Kudo Takeshi, who installed sculptures different in expression and concept, indicating the variety of design possibilities that concrete offers. Particularly fruitful was the engagement of Bradford Graves (1970), whose organic forms visually elevated the unarticulated space near Gradišče. In the same year the Maribor sculptor Vlasta Zorko Tihec enlivened the area in front of the Second Grammar School with a massive block featuring contrasting softly modelled details. The optically varied layered ball of Slavko Tihec (1973) attractively dominates the municipal park with its harmoniously elaborated floor area.
Outside the town, on one bank of the Drava River, stands a minimalist sculpture of the Polish artist Macie Stankowski (1977), whose design of a "door" effectively blends with the river landscape. An interesting sight is Lujo Vodopivec's fountain (1977), situated in front of Hotel Slavija, which was later removed and today stands in front of Maribor's RTV building, although it no longer serves as a fountain.
In 1983 a concrete spiral by Japanese artist Harunori Fujimote rose among the high blocks of flats, and in front of the new VEKŠ building a more intimate sculpture by Mojca Smerdu was erected. Three years later participants in the International Symposium included Dragica Čadež, the American sculptor Will Nettleship, who created the "walk-over" floor sculpture beside the Maribor Art Gallery, and Robert Adzema, who marked a "sunny" spot near the cemetery in Pobrežje with an original sundial.
See also
- Forma Viva Collection
- Maribor Art Gallery
- Forma Viva Open Air Steel Sculpture Collection, Ravne na Koroškem
- Forma Viva Open Air Stone Sculpture Collection, Seča
- Forma Viva Open Air Wood Sculpture Collection, Kostanjevica na Krki
External links
- Forma Viva Maribor on the Maribor Art Gallery webpage
- A research piece about the history as well as contemporary state of the Maribor forma Viva