Embassy Events

At Žilina’s Stanica Cultural Center, American Artist Helps Children Explore Their Creativity

Roberta Gentry develops children’s books and illustrations during her stay at Stanica.  (credit: Stanica Cultural Center)

With Embassy support, American artist Roberta Gentry recently spent several months working at the Stanica Cultural Center in Žilina, Slovakia. From March 27 until June 16, Ms. Gentry became an integral member of the community at Stanica, helping to organize children’s workshops and to create the new S2 Theater, as well as creating many works of her own. The Children’s Atelier at Stanica, with which Ms. Gentry worked, guides children in developing creatively while respecting their opinions and treating their work to a professional exhibition style. The S2 Theater is an outdoor structure made entirely of mud, straw, and crates, and is located beneath an underpass in the city of Žilina. During her stay, Ms. Gentry participated in the exhibitions Pecha Kucha and Magic Words, as well as creating paintings meant to illustrate children’s stories she had written. Stanica, which serves both as a railway station and as a cultural center, is run by the NGO Truc sphérique and aims to be a center for international arts and culture for the Žilina region.