Not all artists who create religion-themed works of art are religious. Unlike them, Slavko Oblak of a man of deep faith. Using his favourite material, bronze, Oblak has cast hundreds of religious objects, ranging from Holy Family and Redeemer plaques to medals and large-scale sculptures of the Holy Family with baby Jesus.
Oblak creative interest was in the object and in the environment, allowing the sculptor to create works in collaboration with the technology and in response to man and the environment, which he manifested in the small-scale masterpiece Mary, Mother of God on a pedestal. Oblak donated the sculpture to Bled Castle in 2002. Given that Oblak acts in his capacity of a sculptor, a trained carpenter, and an architect, the sculpture must always be viewed as part of the castle chapel. He did not only blend architecture and sculpture, but also included the frescoes in the room. Simply put, he did everything to engage the viewer and inspire the belief in the Revealer and Mary, whose name means ‘beloved by God’. According to Christian teachings, Mary conceived and gave birth to Jesus Christ through the power of God. The cult of Mary originates in the Christian asceticism, and in the Western Roman Catholic Church it is related to the romantic and chivalrous devotion to women in general.
The church prioritizes devotion to Mary as the ‘queen of saints’ and recognizes her right to ultimate respect. The highlights of the cult are special days dedicated to Mary, as well as churches, societies and orders that carry her name. Dogmas of the immaculate conception (Pius IX, 1854) and ascension (Pius XII, 1950) were publicly proclaimed.
Oblak gives us a full-body figure of Mary with a child. The only way to understand its majesty and impact is through a metaphor. Mary’s body is reduced to the most essential elements – the shape of a circle and triangle as the archetype of the perfect shape, the triangle between the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The sculptor transposes the relationship between the spiritual and the physical into bronze. We see a child and a saint standing calmly in front of us without any irrelevant information. The child – Jesus – is shown with a small head and a large halo, his body hidden underneath a wide smooth cloak, gently folding at the edges. He seems to be hovering above the ground as befits a divine being e seems floating above ground, befitting to a divine creHe seems. The sculptor used the same texture approaches in the statue of Mary. A large halo surrounding an undefined face, growing into a smooth and shining cloak interrupted by a rough-surface square which passes into a long drapery with vertical folds.
Slavko Oblak made his first draft of the sculpture in 2000, the year when some deeply religious people expected to the world to end. This sparked an increased interest in religion, and Bled commissioned the sculptor who was born in Bled but spent most of his life in West Germany. As the 1000th anniversary of the first written mention of Bled Castle approached, Oblak was invited to commemorate the occasion with one of his works He needed to connect the anniversary with the oldest preserved architecture in Bled, the castle chapel. Oblak was not keen on turning the occasion into a major ceremony, but chose to transfer deep religion through a bronze figure to an individual, like a peaceful, meditative ticket to spirituality.
The sculptor engages an individual in several ways, through the sculpture and the entire chapel. The fresco in the background is of the image of the Holy Face of Jesus on Veronica’s veil, painted in such intricate folds that it appears to be moving, while the saints on both sides of the presbytery are looking towards the sculpture, inviting everyone present to join in the worship of Mary.
Mary with Jesus on the pedestal near the saints is mystically illuminated from above and behind. If we face the altar in the morning with the sunlight on the statues and look upward, we can see the depiction of the Holy Trinity: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In the light emanating from the Holy Spirit towards the sculpture the physical and spiritual power come together. We should not forget that Oblak is a master at positioning his sculptures: as a carpenter and architect, he is familiar with the tricks that make magic happen. Oblak goes to great lengths to help us feel the spiritual moment of the family coming together and sharing a deep meditative conversation. Not rationally, but through the body and senses, individuals now feel the spiritual awakening, a strong emotional experience which is the consequence of the unity with our world and the spiritual world.
Each sculpture is part of a greater story. Begin your journey by discovering it in the introductory video.