Bio

With an open mind, drift beyond the reach of all eyes.

My name is Stanislav Jasovský. I trained as a physician and spent my whole life working as a doctor. I now live in Stará Ľubovňa, Slovakia; earlier I spent part of my life in Kremnica. These days, as a retiree, I devote myself solely to my greatest love—abstract expressionism. Allow me to share a few words about the genesis and evolution of my artistic “madness.”

Exactly thirty-five years ago I felt my first real stirrings while looking at paintings in a well-known Prague gallery. In that moment I realized that a work of art can churn up the most intimate layers of a person. That was where everything began.

The beautiful landscape of my native region—the Pieniny Mountains and the High Tatras—has enchanted countless artists, and it captivated my feelings too, begging to be rendered in paint. So my artistic search started with realism: snow-covered cottages, little streams, Tatra peaks, the Three Crowns in the Pieniny… that was the core of my work. Life carried me along in that vein for fifteen years. Yet I kept feeling the need to change something—to face the canvas with a certain boldness, without logic, and quickly dredge something up from my subconscious. That was the moment I crossed into the distinctive realm of abstract emotionality.

It was not easy to abandon familiar stereotypes, to free myself from what my eyes perceived, and to jump onto a completely different track—one where everything is, at first glance, masked and unobtrusive, yet far more intense and rich, waiting for a sensitive observer. In this way I discovered abstract expressionism, which swallowed me whole.

Feelings, dreams, desires, illusions, sensations, impressions, memories, disappointments, uncertainty, humility—and the wonderful moments life offers—are all hidden somewhere inside us in virtual form. But where, exactly? How can one find them, grasp them, give them substance, and pour them onto a canvas—give them shape, colour, planes and lines—without missing that solemn instant when the soul briefly reveals itself? One must ignite every sense at once, for that feeling will never return. Thus began a great, demanding adventure of searching and revealing, punctuated by daily failures. It was important at least to find coloured shards of glass, if not diamonds straight away. Yet effort, persistence and courage gradually bring results and satisfaction to every searching painter.

Spontaneity, bold and rapid rhythmic brushstrokes, dynamism—these define my style. The word “careful” is harmful and dangerous in abstract expressionism. We must literally pour our visions onto the canvas, straight from those unknown dimensions. An abstract painting need not be unequivocally defined; it is an unfinished sentence, a moment caught in time. It waits and relies on the viewer’s feedback—on their sensitivity and their ability to decipher the artist’s intention and message. It is up to the beholder to use their own feelings to complete the work. I create not only for my own pleasure but also to reach those around me and pass on the pleasant feeling a painting can radiate.

Abstraction emits energy, and if we give it a minute and do not ignore its feelings, it always repays us with a gentle caress. A painting should not become a dead, dusty piece of furniture. Abstraction must calm us, hearten us and supply us with energy—we must literally communicate with it.

Painting has become the fixed point of my life—both a need and nourishment at once.

Besides my brush, my family is essential to me. I also love good music, which accompanies every effort, and I must not forget dry humour, tennis and nature, which remains a great mystery to me.

“Never detach yourself from your dreams! When they disappear, you will go on existing, but you will cease to live.”
—Mark Twain