ARTIST BIOGRAPHY

Slovak artist Miroslav Pelák explores social and political issues through paintings that merge modernism, social realism and postmodern sensibilities. Drawing on everyday life and current events, he reinterprets traditional visual language to examine the enduring influence of communist-era propaganda. His distinctive compositions feature oversized, disproportionate silhouettes and cubist-inspired figures, confronting the relationship between ideology, power and collective memory. As a Slovak artist, Pelák brings a personal perspective to the legacy of Soviet-style imagery, exposing its continuing cultural resonance. He graduated in Studio Painting from the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague and was a finalist for the 2020 Prize of Art Critique for Young Painting.

“My work looks at the mix of social commentary and traditional painting, blending modern and classic styles. I use figures inspired by cubism and socialist realism to reflect on the strange and often ironic side of today’s world, critiquing things like consumerism, hedonism, and political disillusionment. The distorted figures in my paintings, with bold, expressionistic lines, capture the tension in a society obsessed with the body and luxury. By reworking traditional painting techniques, I try to explore the gap between what we see and what’s really going on in our global, post-Internet world.” – Miroslav Pelák

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2022 Rider of the Apocalypse, Simchowitz Gallery

GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2025 New Suns Rising, Toxic Arts

2025 Two of a Kind, 19 Karen Contemporary Artspace, Mermaid Beach, Australia

2024 ORIGINS 2.0, Rhodes

2023 Summer Mix Vol. 1, TUESDAY TO FRIDAY