ROOTS: Walk and Workshop with the Artist Maj Horn and Sylva Mertanová
Curator: Lýdia Pribišová
23 November 2025 | 14:00 – 17:00 | Fleck 2.0 coworking, Mierové nám. 17 | Trenčiansky luh, Trenčín | workshop / walk
Join us for an afternoon walk and workshop dedicated to exploring the connections between humans and animals. Together, we will explore ecological knowledge, interspecies kinships, and discuss the need for responsible coexistence.
Led by Danish artist Maj Horn, whose work connects art and ecology, we will focus on storytelling as a methodological framework — enriched with performative, sensory, and playful approaches. Together, we will try to recognize the “invisible” plants and animals around us and perceive their importance for local ecosystems and our own experience.
This event follows the first gathering, ROOTS: Storytelling about Animals and Plants, in which we explored topics such as traditional ecological knowledge, folklore, ecocritical thinking, and concepts like interspecies kinship and plant blindness—the tendency to overlook plants (and sometimes animals) and thus their importance within ecosystems.
In this second part, we will move outdoors—into Trenčiansky luh area. The event will begin with a performance lecture, followed by a workshop and a walk. The focus will be on the cow and the beaver.
Programme:
14:00 – Performance lecture and workshop
15:15 – Coffee break
15:30 – Walk and workshop
The event will start indoors, where artist Maj Horn will give a performance lecture and lead a workshop. This will explore various themes and perspectives on the cow, ranging from domestication and milk production to its role in landscapes and consumption, as well as its significance in myths and art. The performance will incorporate literature, personal experiences, images, costumes, and organic materials. It is performed in English but will be translated into Slovak.
After a break with coffee, tea and cake, the event will continue outdoors.
Together with Sylva Mertanová, the director of the White Carpathians Protected Landscape Area Administration (Správa Chránenej krajinnej oblasti Biele Karpaty), we will visit a location where a family of beavers lives.
The beaver, known as the ‘ecosystem engineer’, is one of the keystone species that transform landscapes by building dams, creating wetlands and supporting biodiversity. After an absence of more than a century, the beaver has returned to Slovakia and settled in the centre of Trenčín. Together, we will explore: What can we learn from the beaver? What companionship, stories and knowledge can they offer us?
Practical information:
– The event is open to all age groups.
– Bring waterproof and warm clothing for the outdoor part of the event.
– The event will be held in English and Slovak.
– Photo and video documentation will take place during the event and may be used to promote and document Trenčín 2026.
This event is part of the artistic project Floating Communities by Danish artist Maj Horn, curated by Lýdia Pribišová.
Project mediator: Veronika Marek Markovičová
BIO:
Sylva Mertanová
(source: Sylva Mertanová. Photo: Maj Horn)
Mgr. Sylva Mertanová has been working professionally in nature conservation since 1997. She works for the Správa Chránenej krajinnej oblasti Biele Karpaty, responsible for the territory of the White Carpathians and the districts of Trenčín and Nové Mesto nad Váhom. Her work focuses on basic scientific research and the monitoring of vegetation, wildlife, and habitats. She also prepares plans and oversees the implementation of practical conservation measures for protected areas and protected species.
Maj Horn
(source: “A” performance by Maj Horn, Gl. Strand, DK. Photo: Ida Reimi)
Maj Horn is an artist based in Copenhagen, Denmark. She works with research-based and socially engaged methods and media such as performance, photography, organic materials, and installation. She holds an MFA from the Funen Art Academy (DK). To deepen her understanding of landscapes, biodiversity, and ecosystem dynamics, she studied Interpretation in Nature – Theory and Practice at the University of Copenhagen, which she integrates into her artistic practice.
