Sketch for the Painting Lonely Horse 1936

Cyprián Majerník made this pencil sketch, titled "Sketch for the Painting Lonely Horse", at some point during his short life. Majerník was a Slovak artist who died very young, aged 35, just after the end of the Second World War. He was one of many artists who saw the modern world as a place of alienation and existential uncertainty, and his pictures often feature lonely figures in barren landscapes. Looking closely, you can see that the horse stands in a ruined building; classical columns loom behind it. The scene is unsettling, perhaps even symbolic of the ruins of civilization. The horse itself is well-defined, but the background is sketchy and vague, as if to suggest that the world has become fragmented and unknowable. To understand Majerník better, you could explore Slovak history during and after the war, including the changing role of art institutions. Ultimately, what we see in this sketch is a reflection of Majerník's own experience of living through a time of great social and political upheaval.