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[vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text="12/4 – 15/6 2025" font_container="tag:h3|text_align:left" use_theme_fonts="yes"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text="Miloš Cvach and Sophie Curtil: Harmony of Opposites" use_theme_fonts="yes"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_column_text]The exhibition of the Czech artist Miloš Cvach (1945) and the French artist Sophie Curtil (1949) aims to outline their creative development from their student years to the present. In a chronological line and in a mutual confrontation, it reveals the specifics, intersections and differences of the respective artists whose private and professional paths crossed each other half a century ago. Their creative personalities crystallised in the climate of a free society, in France, where Miloš Cvach immigrated to escape the Czechoslovak ‘normalisation’ totalitarianism in the mid-1970s and joined his wife, Sophie. Both of them were thus able to naturally assimilate the contemporary tendencies of world art, such as minimalism or the Arte Povera movement, and formulate their authentic artistic expression against their background. Even though they expressed themselves in the language of geometric abstraction, their work always remained firmly anchored in the tangible world – especially the landscape and urban architecture. Their creative processes derive from careful observation of natural and cultural phenomena, through the exploration of their internal laws, to their final translation into eloquent artistic compression. The concept of the exhibition at the Museum Kampa was inspired by the remarkable book L’art par quatre chemins (To Art by Four Ways), in which Miloš Cvach and Sophie Curtil offered a unique opportunity to interpret works from the history of art. Their playful interpretation based on the ‘poetics of the four elements’, as defined by the French philosopher and aesthetician Gaston Bachelard, can be applied to their own work.  The register and colouring of Miloš Cvach’s works show affinity with the aesthetics attributed to the Far East. The precisely constructed shapes of his reliefs possess the lightness and elegance of

[vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text="22/2 – 1/6 2025" font_container="tag:h3|text_align:left" use_theme_fonts="yes"][vc_separator][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text="Pavel Reisenauer" use_theme_fonts="yes"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_column_text]Pavel Reisenauer (1961–2024) is best known as the author of the distinctive covers and illustrations for the weekly magazine Respekt and the drawings for the Orientace supplement of the Lidové noviny daily. However, his cooperation with the print media was only the most visible part of his work, which overshadowed a much broader spectrum of his lesser-known or completely unknown artistic expressions – paintings, free drawings, illustrations, comics, and photographs. Unlike the weekly prints, however, these were almost never published.  The present exhibition strives to highlight these unknown positions of Reisenauer’s work alongside his iconic covers and to offer a more comprehensive view of what he was concerned with in his artistic practice. From this starting point, it will be possible to explore the relationship between Reisenauer’s ‘applied’ magazine art and his other works, particularly his paintings: were his paintings a sideline, however intrinsically motivated, an attempt to match the popular newspaper illustrations or unjustly overlooked works?  The exhibition, prepared in cooperation with the magazine Respekt, will present a wide selection of black-and-white and colour covers from Respekt and the front pages of the Orientace supplement, as well as a number of paintings, drawings, digital prints and photographs. Curators: Alena Pomajzlová, Petr Bielický[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

[vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text="8/6 - 8/9 2024" font_container="tag:h3|text_align:left" use_theme_fonts="yes"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text="From Lines to Matter / Vojtěch Kovařík" use_theme_fonts="yes"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_column_text]If our destinies are predetermined, what place does that leave for free will? For luck? For chance? Vojtěch Kovařík confronts the issue in his paintings – and with the current exhibition at Museum Kampa, he steps into the third dimension: the smooth surface of his paintings are accompanied by reliefs and sculptures, with the artist’s path leading from lines that divide the canvas to sculptural works. The themes in this exhibition are universal, touching on the very foundations of Euro-American civilization. Even today in the third millennium, ancient myths, gods and goddesses, Titans, heroes and heroines are all still relevant, their robust forms exceeding the monumental format of the paintings. We may see them as archetypes, whose stories and actions have served since time immemorial to mark the limits and possibilities of our own passage through life and search for meaning. These oversized heroes are megalopsychoi, the great-souled men, the first individualities. Perhaps that is why we may only catch a glimpse of them through the window frame of the canvas, not in their entirety. Sisyphus sinks under the weight of his actions. The parting lovers Eros and Psyche suffer the burden of predestination. The labours of Heracles speak to the fulfilment of destiny, the first of these being to train the Nemean lion. Just as Zeus’s son made himself invulnerable wrapped in his lion skin, so too does the painter face more and more challenges that seem impossible to overcome. The reduced setting of the paintings consists of a stylized interior and Mediterranean landscape, fertile and arid, dusk or dawn, inlets, deserts, and oases. The artist’s approach is authentic: a unique syncresis of the influences of antiquity, modernity, and the digital present.

[vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text="18/2 - 30/3 2025" font_container="tag:h3|text_align:left" use_theme_fonts="yes"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text="VISIONS OF THE WORLD" use_theme_fonts="yes"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_column_text]This exhibition that presents works exclusively from the Wigam Collection is centered on two main visions of the world. In one space, the focus lies on the experience of the world through the body; while in the other, the world is, first and foremost, observed and lived through the social interdependencies. Needless to say, this distinction signals only the primary point of attention since one cannot think about the body without its social habitus and, conversely, the social order is personal and physical. Art is a place where values can and should be negotiated without being afraid to confront the public with difficult topics. These two visions, reflected in outstanding works made by some of the most interesting artists of our time, seem to be of great relevance at this moment. Participating artists: P. Barlow, G. Baselitz, M. Bourouissa, M. Cahn, J. Claracq, A. Cudahy, M. Eichwald, T. Emin, W. Fangor, L. Fratino, J. Gribbon, D. Hadjab, P. Halilaj, D. Hockney, N. Jaouda, C. Johnson, M. Jungwirth, M. Kara, A. Khorchid, V. Kovarik, X. Lei, A. Niles, H. Quinlan & R. Hastings, D. Richter, G. Rouy, J. Semmel, A. Slowak, P. Stasik, H. Steers, A. Szapocznikow, M. Thomas, K. Wang, A. Warhol, K. Wiley. Curator: Marta Gnyp Please note: the exhibition includes sexually explicit works.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

[vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_raw_html]JTVCem9icmF6X2RhdHVtX2tvbmFuaSU1RA==[/vc_raw_html][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text="Jiří SOZANSKÝ – August 1968 / 1969" use_theme_fonts="yes"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_column_text]In his work, Jiří Sozanský (*1946) has long thematised traumatic moments of Czech history from the times of Nazi and Communist totalitarianism. In his sculpture August 1968/1969, he focuses on the breaking point brought upon the society by the invasion of the Warsaw Pact troops in August 1968 and the onset of the so-called ‘normalisation’ in the following year.   The cultural and political thaw of 1968 was understood by many as a breath of freedom after twenty years of rigid totalitarianism. This revival process was destroyed by the invasion of the occupation forces of the Soviet Union, Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria and East Germany on the night of 20 August. In the sculpture, the year 1968 is represented by an erected obelisk, into which a giant wedge is diagonally embedded, like a knife wound or a lightning strike.   The year 1969 is depicted as an obelisk or a crossbar broken in half. While the August invasion was an intervention from the outside, the tragedy of 1969 consisted in the acceptance of the occupation by the political representation of the state and a large part of its citizens and in the repressive crackdown on those who wanted to express their civil dissent. The August 1969 crackdown was not carried out by the occupation troops but by the domestic security, paramilitary and military forces.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text] Historical context — The Legacy of the Two August Anniversaries[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

[vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_raw_html]JTVCem9icmF6X2RhdHVtX2tvbmFuaSU1RA==[/vc_raw_html][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text="Identity - the story of Czech graphic design" use_theme_fonts="yes"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_column_text] The exhibition on all three floors of Museum Kampa shows the best of the history of Czech graphic design, i.e. works in which aesthetic quality, good technical realisation, craftsmanship and functionality go hand in hand. Visitors may see several hundred exhibits from the beginning of the 20th century to the present day: iconic posters, exquisitely designed books and magazines, dozens of logotypes, the development of state symbols and navigation systems, as well as exceptional examples of graphic design from the era of audiovisual media. The exhibition, curated by Filip Blažek, Linda Kudrnovská and David Korecký, is the part of the multi-genre project Identity – the story of Czech graphic design (www.projektidentita.cz), which includes a TV series broadcast in January and February 2024 on Czech Television, a forthcoming feature film on graphic design, which will be released in Czech cinemas on 10 October, and a book of the same name, which was published to accompany the exhibition and is also a monograph on graphic design.  The exhibition is divided into three floors thematically focused on public space, shared experiences and the private world. Iconic works will be highlighted through special labels with arrows to ensure that no visitor misses key exhibits. In accompanying texts, visitors may learn about the broader cultural, historical and political context of the exhibited artefacts, i.e. how graphic design influences society and vice versa. The exhibition is a joint project of the Kampa Museum, Typo and Mowshe. The graphic design is by Marvil studio, the architecture is by Adam Blažek, Jan Kloss and Matěj Činčera.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

[vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_raw_html]JTVCem9icmF6X2RhdHVtX2tvbmFuaSU1RA==[/vc_raw_html][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text="Ludmila Seefried Matějková / Before the Door" use_theme_fonts="yes"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_column_text]Ludmila Seefried Matějková (*1938) developed her artistic course for most of her life outside her homeland, specifically in West German Berlin, where she moved in 1967. She returned to the Czech Republic in 2015. Her sculptural and drawing work reflects the horrors of war, the monstrosities of the Stalinist 1950s and the hardships of life in exile. Motifs of direct violence and pain are accompanied by deep insights into the human soul with its silent dramas, such as uprooting, loss of self-esteem, self-torture, apathy, or, on the contrary, questioning, self-awareness and contemplation. The exhibition in Museum Kampa will present a selection of Matějková's work, ranging from early polyester sculptures (Scream, Hanna, Before the Door) to several works in baked clay (The Beggar, Nab, Strangulation). The exhibition will be accompanied by a diary publication with Matějková's memories of her time behind and before the Iron Curtain.  Here, the author uses authentic language to describe the political and social context of the time and its influence on the formation of her artistic language. In the same colourful way, she presents her work of her public space projects in Berlin and in a trio of literary short stories she explains the creation of the sculptures (Hanna, The Beggar, Nab) which will be on display.   Partner of the exhibition:[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_single_image image="8416" img_size="full" onclick="custom_link" link="http://www.lkpumpservice.cz/"][/vc_column][/vc_row]

[vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_raw_html]JTVCem9icmF6X2RhdHVtX2tvbmFuaSU1RA==[/vc_raw_html][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text="Vladimír Houdek: Set of All Movements" use_theme_fonts="yes"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_column_text]It is not difficult to imagine moving from one point to another, from point A to point B. Indeed, the number of points in the universe far exceeds the number of letters in the alphabet, in any alphabet, whether we see them or only assume they are there. How much movement takes place without us being aware of it, without us being able to keep track? What exactly falls within the set of all movements? People move across cities, regions, and continents. They criss-cross the planet. Stars and planets orbit vast galaxies. Molecules vibrate within matter. We study the regularity and deviation of movement between and around points, describing ellipses and ecliptics, the fluctuations of Brownian motion. In order to comprehend all these changes, we create schemata and diagrams, systems of rules. The world is one boundless continuous change, a ceaseless movement. Our ideas about the future have been shaped by modernity and its various utopian schemes. We go back to the crossroads to gaze upon the systems and hypotheses of the past. Among its expansions and centrifugal forces, we search for a centre. Vladimír Houdek’s work revolves around the artificialism of Štyrský and Toyen, the black paintings of Suprematism, Kandinsky’s alchemy and reflections on the spiritual in art. Houdek consistently draws on such materials as books and maps – the guides that lead us through an unknown world. Houdek’s process goes through many stages as he works and reworks layers of acrylic paint, adding, drying, cutting, removing. Alongside these paintings, he also works in gouache and collage. To the glowing alabaster and black expanses of his earlier canvases come the colours of the spectrum, particularly yellow. The titles of his series and exhibitions convey the energy of words:

[vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text="8/2 - 21/4 2025" font_container="tag:h3|text_align:left" use_theme_fonts="yes"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text="Tomáš Rajlich – the Sculptor" use_theme_fonts="yes"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_column_text]While Tomas Rajlich is known today mainly as a minimalist painter, he originally studied sculpture at the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague. An exhibition at former stables of Museum Kampa in early 2025 will focus on Rajlich’s sculptural work from the 1960s. Three dozen of his metal and plastic sculptures and several early geometric drawings will be on display, all are works from before 1969, when he went into exile in the Netherlands. Tomas Rajlich, who will celebrate his 85th birthday during the exhibition, was, together with Jiří Hilmar, Radek Kratina and Arsén Pohribný, one of the founding members of the Concretists Club (Klub konkretistů) in 1967. In the Netherlands, he worked as a teacher at the Academy in the Hague and collaborated with the Yvon Lambert Gallery in Paris. He returned to the Czech Republic for good in 2010. A comprehensive retrospective of his paintings, in which his work gradually evolved from black geometric rasters to shimmering monochromes of pastel colours, took place at the Museum Kampa in 2017. Partners of the exhibition: [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_text_aligment="" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no"][vc_column][vc_single_image image="8416" img_size="full" onclick="custom_link" img_link_target="_blank" link="http://www.lkpumpservice.cz/"][vc_single_image image="8860" img_size="full"][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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