Duck fountain
Statue, monument, memorial plaque
The public squares and parks of Bratislava boast numerous 20th-century statues and sculptures, many of which were created by Hungarian sculptors. After the city fell into Czech hands in 1918 and the communist takeover in 1945, nationalist and/or ideological barbarism destroyed several public statues with Hungarian references. At the same time, high-quality works with "neutral" themes usually survived these difficult decades. ; One of these is the lovely fountain that stands in a landscaped public square in Ferenc József-város, the eastern suburb of modern Bratislava. The work, created by sculptor Róbert Kühmayer and erected in 1914, is an irregular rock formation protruding from a circular pool of water. These three naked children, cast in bronze, are seen trying to catch ducks flapping their wings. The lively scene, with naturalistic depictions, surround the rock on all sides, thus transforming it into a walkable sculpture group. ; Thin jets of water emerge from the ducks' mouths, thus transforming the work into a bubbling fountain. ; Róbert Kühmayer was born on November 1, 1883 in Bratislava and died on February 27, 1972 in Vienna. He studied sculpture in Budapest and Paris. He was a citizen of Hungary for approximately 36 years of his long life, and of Czechoslovakia and Austria for 26 years each. He spent almost sixty years of his life in Bratislava, and after 1945, because he was considered a German national, he had to leave his homeland.