2015 » Slovakia » Section of Countries and Regions

Reflection of an Image. Milan Čorba

“I do not create in order to make pretty paintings or beautiful sculptures. Art is just a means to vision. Whatever I look at, it all surpasses and surprises me; I don’t even know exactly what I am looking at. It is too intricate. One simply ought to keep trying to emulate in order to clarify what we see.“ (Alberto Giacometti, My Reality, Arbor Vitae, Prague, 1998)

The inner and outer self, introvert versus extrovert nature, reflection and image are intertwined; one cannot be without the other, just like body and soul, yin and yang. The life of an artist and of art is reflected in creation, process, shape and content. An artist pays attention to his surroundings, being aware of and inspired by it, confronting it with his inner self. One without the other is like body without soul, like half truth or deception. It is the opposite of a whole and harmony.

Man / artist has a soul and his own human story. He carries it inside and outside. It is a costume, a tailor-made costume made to fit the size of the artist and human being.

The texture, lines and curves of a costume are created by a costume designer. This is where another, new story begins, the one of a philosopher and psychologist, of Man and Artist. Through the costume he is able to reveal the inner self, the soul of the one who wears it and fits it to shape that is his body. The costume thus also becomes his shadow, a reflection of his outlook, of his inner world and thoughts.

The exposition Reflection of an Image. Milan Čorba pays homage to costume designer Milan Čorba who left distinct creative and human legacy to the Slovak and Czech theatre art. His peculiar talent showed in a number of theatre and film costumes for Czechoslovak, and later also Slovak and Czech theatre stages and films. Overall, he participated in the creation of 200 theatre productions, 62 feature films and almost 500 television films, productions and series.

Milan Čorba’s art was characteristic for its sense for detail, historical accuracy, pattern consistency. His costumes fully supported the statement of the production. Čorba never perceived clothes to be visual art objects, but rather something that was “the carrier of a dramatic idea”. He conceived his work based on the principles of realism and verismo. It was the verismo approach that allowed to search for “truth”. An actor dressed in a costume designed by Milan Čorba would become the bearer of emotional information. Both the actor and costume contained a mystery, metaphor and, at the same time, the history of all mankind.

An inseparable part of Milan Čorba’s life and identity was his pedagogical work at the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava. As a teacher, dean, professor and later rector he influenced many contemporary stage designers and costume artists. His teaching career allowed him to fully develop his essence as “a visionary” for whom ideas and their fulfilment were an important aspect of being. Milan Čorba’s human greatness was, in addition to his talent and professionalism, his most prominent feature. The personality of Milan Čorba has been fully captured in the books he published in the last period of his life: Against Time (2011), Costume Art (2009), A Candle Flame Won’t Brighten the Sun (2014) and Culture and Civilization (2014).

The character of the exposition Reflection of An Image. Milan Čorba is defined by the fact that it is placed in the historical space of the Gothic Church of St. Anna. The preserved frescos have become the base material of the exposition. Objects do not aspire to compete with the space – on the contrary, the exhibition becomes its component, emphasizing and reflecting its beauty and uniqueness.. Mirrors transform it into a modern palimpsest that links the past with the present. The sediments of mirror images evoke memories of the artist, his experience and the people who influenced his life. The interior of the object, however, allows the visitor to enjoy moments of contemplation. Direct visitors thus become spectators and actors simultaneously – they can observe the stories of people and a world which automatically becomes theatre.