Who Is Culture For? Contemporary Culture in Polarized Times
Panel discussion at tranzit sk
18 June 2026, 6 PM
Panel Discussion: András Cséfalvay, Katarína Trnovská, Dominik Želinský
Moderated by Zuzana Révészová
As public funding of art and culture is gradually threatened by austerity measures and political restrictions, we are once again confronted with questions about culture as a public value: who is culture for, who decides what constitutes value for “the public,” and how do cultural institutions relate to broader society in times of growing polarization?
Artists and cultural institutions are increasingly portrayed as disconnected from ordinary people, while publicly funded culture has become a target of political attacks, resentment, and distrust. At the same time, debates about national identity, the urban–rural divide, and cultural belonging have become more polarized.
This discussion will explore the relationship between cultural institutions and their audiences, the narrative of “elites versus ordinary people” in cultural debates, and the role of culture in shaping collective imaginaries of the nation. We will also ask why publicly funded culture has become a site of contestation and what current conflicts reveal about the place of culture in contemporary society.
Project Revolting with Care is a two-year platform (2026–2027) exploring cultural resistance in times of democratic backsliding and economic austerity, conceived by Zuzana Révészová(Spolka). Project is organized in collaboration with Judit Angel (tranzit sk).
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Revolting with Care is a project conceived by Zuzana Révészová (Spolka) and organized together with Judit Angel (tranzit.sk).
Revolting with Care is a project of the tranzit.org network.
sk.tranzit.org is a member of the network.
ERSTE Foundation is the main partner of tranzit.org.
Media partners:
Artalk.info, Flash Art CZ & SK, Kapitál, GoOut.net
András Cséfalvay is a visual artist, mythopoet, and Associate Professor at the Academy of Fine Arts in Bratislava. After studying painting and mathematics, he focused his research on the reality and usefulness of fiction. Through digital animation, installations and world-building he investigates "non-human" perspectives—from extinct species to subatomic particles and AI. His work interrogates the relationship between culture and technology, and the political and ethical aspects of listening to non-dominant voices in world interpretation. He is the recipient of the Oscar Cepan Prize and Tatra Banka Grand Prize for visual artists. His recent exhibitions include KW Berlin, Trafo Budapest, Muzeum Sztuki Lodz, Art-in-General New York, Karlin Studios Prague and National Gallery Budapest. He is co-founder of the Digital Arts Platform.
Zuzana Révészová is a researcher specializing in cultural participation, cultural policy, and urban development. She examines how ideas, narratives, and public expectations shape city-making and strategic decision-making. She has experience facilitating participatory strategic planning and developing economic sustainability models for cultural and community-based projects.
Katarína Trnovská is an art historian, curator, and writer who studied at Trnava University and the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava. She worked at design factory as a curator and programme coordinator, and later managed publishing projects at Kunsthalle
Bratislava. She is the co-author and editor of several publications on contemporary architecture, design, and visual art. Since 2020, she has served as Director of the Bratislava City Gallery, one of Slovakia’s leading public art institutions.
Dominik Želinský is a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Sociology of the Slovak Academy of Sciences. His research focuses on power, authority, charismatic leadership, and contemporary Czech–Slovak relations. He is a Faculty Fellow at Yale University's Center for Cultural Sociology and an Associate Editor of the American Journal of Cultural Sociology. His work has appeared in leading international sociology journals.
