Peter Roller is an inventive Slovak sculptor who masters space, form and the material itself. Since entering the art world in the 1970s, he has created a special associative and metaphoric language of sculpture. He equally enjoys working with stone, wood and metal. Light has played important role in his work from the very beginning. For Roller, the material building of sculptures and objects is a philosophical utterance whose outer expression is dependent on the inner construction. The light of the environment, which turns the sculpture’s surface into shadows, emphasizes and complements the quality of the form by its various intensity.
Under the influence of Japanese culture which became his favorite while participating in international symposiums, Roller understands light as an expression of the meditative environment surrounding the sculpture. The sculptures and objects express a deep immersion into the secrets of nature and its natural contrast to civilization changes. Handling imaginary space, the construction of objects through lines, hollows and volumes, and their alternation, contrasts, and permanent and mutual tension eventually creates balance and harmony in his work. This exhibition features sculptures which were created in the “new millennium”, i.e., after 2000. They are special legacies, combinations and symbolic signs of Roller’s typical meditations and philosophical deliberation. From 1994 to 1998 these sculptures were preceded by drawings which comprise an inseparable part of this exhibition. They are special because they formed the basis for his monumental sculptures.
However, Peter Roller has systematically worked with drawing since the mid-1980s, and it was always an inherent part of his work. In his drawings he created his own world in which the philosophies of ancient and East Asian cultures are combined with our traditions. Intensive lineation alternates with clear and precise lines, while the rhythmic drawing of imaginary intersections creates mystical spaces, a kind of new world of civilization. Forgotten or possibly ours?
Professor Peter Roller was born on July 7, 1948 in Bratislava. From 1963 to 1967 he studied in the department of woodcarving under prof. Drexler and prof. Korkoš at the School of Applied Arts in Bratislava. From 1969 to 1975 he studied in the department of figural sculpture under prof. Kostka, prof. Kulich, and doc. Trizuljak at the Academy of Fine Arts (AFAD) in Bratislava. He founded the Nippon Club, Friends of Japanese Culture Association in 1990 and served as its president until 1998. Beginning in 1992, he worked as an assistant of sculpture at AFAD, before being appointed associate professor in 1996 and professor in 2009. He works with monumental and chamber sculpture, drawing and graphic art, and his participation in more than 40 symposiums all over the world (Hagi (1981,1984) and Aio (1994) in Japan, Burlington (1990) in the USA, Scarborough (1994) in Canada and Lista Fyr (1995) in Norway to name a few) has constituted a very important phase in his life.
