Slovak culture, the AMPLIFIER Festival, and Slovakia itself are going through tough times. Pseudo-experts have taken over cultural institutions, they are ruining transparent selection processes, canceling grants awarded by experts, and supporting "our people." What percentage of Slovaks are even interested in what is happening in contemporary culture? What is actually going on and how will it affect ordinary citizens? We will seek answers during a discussion with two indomitable women whose stories of fighting for free Slovak culture are powerful and inspiring for all of us. We will introduce you to Veronika Blažeková Němcová, former director of the SNG Schaubmarov mlyn in Pezinok, today an active member of the civic initiative Open Culture, and Veronika Gabčíková, member of the Association of Slovak Independent Theatres, leader of the New Theatre in Nitra, and artistic director of the Žilina Puppet Theatre. As a bonus, there will be a screening of a film about the Slovak painter Andrej Dúbravský, who is renowned both at home and abroad, but has been ostracized by the current Minister of Culture. The event will be hosted by presenter and culture editor Jana Močková.
Jana Močková studied journalism at Comenius University in Bratislava. She started at Radio Devín, and from 2010 to 2014 she was an editor at the daily newspaper SME, in the culture department. She has been with Daily N since its inception. She focuses mainly on topics related to art, architecture, and cultural policy. In 2018, she received two nominations for the Journalism Award in the categories of interview and reporting.
Photo: Diary N and the hostess archive