These words by Mikuláš Galanda and Ľudovít Fulla, taken from their Private Letters (1930), are a fragment of a manifesto of modern Slovak visual culture. Their understanding of artistic creation as a natural, playful process growing out of personal artistic conviction became the starting point for a generation of artists who followed in their footsteps. The Galanda Group, as we know it today, represented a fearless voice and an authentic stance in an environment that systematically restricted—or “normalized”—it.

Since the 1970s, its members—including Andrej Rudavský—have found themselves on a list of artists deemed undesirable by socialist ideology. Despite this—or perhaps precisely because of it—they retained their own distinctive artistic language, imagination, and the spiritual dimension of their work. They were united by the need to seek out forms that were not dictated from the outside, but grew out of personal experience, memory, and a connection to a specific place.

In his “chapels,” Andrej Rudavský depicted the human being as a temple. Symbolically, he thus left a powerful message that freedom can be cultivated from within, regardless of external circumstances. The garden in Podunajské Biskupice became a natural extension of this philosophy—a place where creativity, experimentation, friendly gatherings, and the exchange of ideas intertwine.

What Remains is not merely a collection of works by Slovak artists, gifted in celebration of their friend's jubilee. It is a trace—evidence of a broad community and a network of relationships capable of enduring even under fragile circumstances. Works like these are not built on bronze or stone, but on shared experience, continuity, and inner freedom. What unfolds before you is not merely an exhibition, but an open field—a space for encounter, dialogue, and exchange across generations. An invitation into a garden, where what remains may also become the very thing from which something begins again.