The painter and printmaker Janez Bernik graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Ljubljana and then pursued further studies under the famous printmaker Johnny Friedlaender in Paris. In the late 1950s, Bernik’s oeuvre was greatly influenced by Art Informel (literally, without form), a European movement in abstract art reacting to the experience of World War II and based on the philosophy of existentialism. The emphasis was on expression, gestural techniques, and intense explorations of the materiality of painting: the artists experimented with textures, tactility, paints, and various nontraditional materials. The ideas of Art Informel came to Slovenia through different avenues, introduced among others by artists who lived and worked abroad (e.g., Zoran Mušič) or through major artistic events, such as the Ljubljana Biennale of Graphic Arts.

Bernik’s works follow the principle of the flatness of the medium in painting and printmaking. Rejecting illusionist aids, the artist focused primarily on materiality, which he underscored with unconventional artistic materials such as mortar, used in the painting Wall.

Another important influence was the Catalan artist Antoni Tàpies, who included writing in his works. Bernik employed a similar approach in his Big Letter, where he created a relief (haptic) surface by combining a variety of materials, and then included letters and words that at first glance seem quite meaningful, but are in reality random and do not convey any specific meaning or message. They are part of experimenting with the matter of the painting – they look as if they were incised in it, which further emphasizes the work’s materiality. Bernik also produced prints with similar subjects, thus contributing importantly to the establishment of the Ljubljana Graphic School, presented in some detail on the other side of this room.