The theme of last year was the refugee problem, the theme of this year are women in art. The Grand Opening 2018 is held on February 16th by The National Gallery in Prague, featuring Katarína Máliková, the upcoming star of slovak alternative scene. There is Wunderbild by Katharina Grosse in the big hall of Fair Trade Palace. Katharina Grosse will be present at the Grand Opening. The late artist Maria Lassnig is another women to be presented here. The presenting of world authors is the strong tendency. Large-scale installations are accompanied by other artwork of czech and foreign authors.
The theme of last year was the refugee problem, the theme of this year are women in art. The Grand Opening 2018 is held on February 16th by The National Gallery in Prague, featuring Katarína Máliková, the upcoming star of slovak alternative scene. There is Wunderbild by Katharina Grosse in the big hall of Fair Trade Palace. Katharina Grosse will be present at the Grand Opening. The late artist Maria Lassnig is another women to be presented here. The presenting of world authors is the strong tendency. Large-scale installations are accompanied by other artwork of czech and foreign authors.
Large-scale Wunderbild by Katharina Grosse was done in a factory hall in Berlin. According to Katharina Grosse, it is an unique opportunity in her experience. Last year, she had chance to see the space, where the daylight conditions are changing according the sun. It is like in her own atelier. „It helps to imagination. The key thing is the colour, it is absolutely projected as clear at this place. The atmosphere of place is supporting the installation and colours are pointed. Abstraction is the structure, which allows you to step into another situation. You are catapulted into the reality, which you cannot imagine,“ Katharina Grosse said about her work. The installation is held for the whole year.
„When we - together with Mr. Fajt, the director – decided to change big hall, I had known I want to invite Katharina to be first artist here. It is February now, but she is doing the third formal opening of world projects. The museum is the place of conflicts, power influences, dialogues and discussions about important questions. It is the dialog with the space and a visitor is invented in this game,“ said Adam Budak, the curator.
More authors, including Maria Lassnig, are curated by Katharina Grosse. Dialogue and conversation between types of artistic aproach are absolutely natural for her. Painting is redefined as artistic praxis. This challenge is shared by both artists.
Works of austrian artist Maria Lassnig who died few years ago, are showed in Czech Republic for the first time, it is the biggest exhibition outside of Austria. Director Fajt reminded it is not only automatic take of big exhibition from Great Britain, but its large adaptation. She is presented not only as painter, but also as a film-maker. Her restaurated movies was presented in New York and they are going to appear in Prague too. Nine movies are showed permanently. The author gained Golden lion in Berliner bienale in 2014, shotly before her death. As reminded in the video, the societies should be based on love, not on fear. Its opposite is a film called „Everyday words are disapearing“.
Lassnig was active in art even in her 90s. As an artist she became to be respected worldwide at the end of 20th century. Her art was visionary, originating from understanding of modern times. She was respected in Austria since 1950s. She lived in New York. She returned to Vienna in 1980 to became first female professor of art in the german-speaking countries. She had big exhibitions in Amsterodam, Bern and New York. The catalogue for czech public has been published recently.
Lukáš Karbus added aquarels to artwork of Marie Lassnig. Monochromatic surfaces are created by Patricia Daudek. The patchwork-like installation reflecting tension between ethnical issues was created by Radek Brousil. He works with fabric which is produced for african market by czech company.
