Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Bratislava

University profile

Academy of Fine Arts and Design (AFAD) in Bratislava was founded on 9 June 1949 by the Act of the Slovak National Council No. 89/1946 Zb.1 It was founded at the beginning of a period marked by the onset of the totalitarian regime in the former Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. This historical fact impacted the development of the Academy in the years to come. For forty years, Academy of Fine Arts and Design was under the pressure of political dogmas promoting the doctrine of socialist realism in art, as well as suffering the political purges afflicting both professors and students. In spite of complicated historical events and ideological repression there were islands of “positive deviation” at the Academy. The resistance to the orthodoxy of socialist realism dictated by the regime was made possible thanks to the intellectual and artistic background of some of the professors and their personal approach to their students. Some departments became legendary and several generations identify with their legacy. Such were the schools of  professors Peter Matejka, Jozef Kostka, Vincent Hložník, Albín Brunovský, Václav Cigler, and the like.
After years of totalitarianism, a period of radical changes came, that opened the possibility to hire the new teachers on the basis of a free competition. The AFAD was one of the few schools in Slovakia (or then Czechoslovakia) where the whole teaching staff was selected in this manner. At that time, many ideas were put forth but in the end the structure of the school did not radically change, remaining in the form of coexistence of applied and fine arts clustered in the media defined departments.

The Academy of Fine Arts and Design Bratislava is a modern European higher education institution. Founded in 1949 it grew up to become a fully accredited school offering the three level study, bachelor, master and doctoral in fine arts, design, architecture, conservation and restoration. The study of the History and Theory of Art and Architecture is accredited in the doctoral level only. The professional practice of our students and faculty are well known in Central European region and wider.
AFAD owns three buildings in the city of Bratislava and the small residence house in town Kremnica, Middle Slovakia. The main building located in the very heart of downtown includes the AFAD library, the Medium Gallery, studios of Architecture and Painting as well as the administration offices. The campus at Drotárska cesta is situated on the hill with an overview on river Danube and Bratislava surroundings.