The Other Side of a Photograph / Jan Svoboda, Lukáš Jasanský–Martin Polák, Michal Kalhous, Alena Kotzmannová, Marie Kratochvílová, Markéta Othová & Jiří Kovanda
Fait Gallery
23. 10. – 20. 12. 2024
Opening : 23. 10. 2024, 7 p.m.
Curator: Denisa Kujelová
The artists of the collective exhibition The Other Side of a Photograph share unconventional visuality, the consistence of light and the concept of the individual photographs. Selected works by Lukáš Jasanský and Martin Polák, Michal Kalhous, Alena Kotzmannová, Marie Kratochvílová and Markéta Othová, in dialogue with Jan Svoboda's personal conception of photography and Jiří Kovanda's subtle interventions, allow us to glimpse the hidden reality of the world in unexpected detail through the artists’ shared sensitivity.
The selection of analogue, mostly black-and-white photographs seemingly captures what almost all of us see. The curator Denisa Kujelová says about the exhibition: “In many cases, banal and sometimes even unphotogenic situations, often emphasised in a deliberately unprofessional manner to the point of amateur photography, are sometimes embarrassing. However, the mundane in them opens up wide boundaries of beauty that we probably would not have thought of without their help.” All of the artists, including Jan Svoboda, have since the late 1960s in various ways transcended the established principles and canons of photography and in their distinctive approach deliberately questioned its supposed message and formal perfection, thus expanding the medium of photography with new possibilities of its treatment and perception.
Jan Svoboda (*1930–1990) was a Czech photographer. His work was characterized by lyrical sensitivity and precision, focusing on still life, landscape and nudes. Svoboda was self-taught and his work was influenced by the painters and sculptors with whom he worked closely. Throughout his career, he tested the potential of photography as a medium, seeking archetypal motifs in ordinary objects. Svoboda's most distinct period spanned the 1960s and 1970s. His photographs were part of major exhibition projects, including retrospectives held after his death. These exhibitions made Svoboda's work accessible to a wider audience. Examples include an exhibition at The Photographers' Gallery, London (2020), the Moravian Gallery in Brno (2015) or a group exhibition in the Museum of Modern Art, Olomouc (2024) and the Gallery of Fine Art, Cheb (2023).
Lukáš Jasanský (*1965) and Martin Polák (*1966) have been a working as a photographic tandem since the 1980s. Their basic means of expression is an experimental approach to photography and work with photographic cycles. They primarily use seriality and repetition. Together they think through the presentation of the series, but also the intention or the actual creation. They have exhibited in the Fait Gallery, Brno (2022), PLATO, Ostrava (2021), House of Photography, GHMP, Prague (2019), or at the international group exhibition Orient, curated by Michal Novotný (CAC Riga, Latvia; Bozar Brussels, Belgium; Bunkier Sztuki Krakow Poland, 2018).
Michal Kalhous (*1967) is the dean of the Faculty of Arts at Ostrava University. He graduated in teaching, specializing in mathematics and physics. He completed his doctoral studies in visual communication at the Faculty of Art and Design of Jan Evangelista Purkyně University. He is represented in public and private collections in the Czech Republic and abroad. He has exhibited in the Museum of Art Olomouc (2024), Josef Sudek Studio, Prague (2023), House of Art, Ostrava (2022), PLATO, Ostrava (2014). In 2022 he participated in a group exhibition in the Czech Centre in Vienna.
Alena Kotzmannová (*1974) is a visual artist who works primarily with the medium of photography, but her work also includes video and installations, which she approaches conceptually. In addition to her studies in the Czech Republic, she has also studied in the UK and Portugal. She took part in residencies in New York, Mexico City and Helsinki. She was shortlisted for the Jindřich Chalupecký Prize and the Jaromír Funke Prize. She has had solo exhibitions in the Berlin Model, Prague (2022), and the 1st Floor Gallery, Prague (2019). She has participated in group exhibitions in Zahorian & Van Espen, Bratislava (2024), Kinsky Palace, Prague (2024), and at hunt kastner, Prague (2023).
Marie Kratochvílová (*1946) is a trained photographer who worked as a photo-documentarist at scientific institutions. Her work was characterized by her effort to capture the essence of reality with an emphasis on atmosphere and detail. Her notable series include Asphalt - Pavements, Snows and Botanical Garden. She joined the Brno conceptual movement of the1970s and collaborating with Jiří Valoch and Dalibor Chatrný. In 1996, she curtailed her photographic activity and started to pursue other activities. Recently, she has appeared at group exhibitions in the Museum of Modern Art, Olomouc (2024), the Moravian Gallery in Brno (2022) and the Klatovy / Klenová Gallery (2018).
Markéta Othová (*1968) graduated from the Academy of Art, Architecture and Design in Prague, majoring in graphic art. Her work is characterized by a conceptual approach, capturing intimate experiences, emotional depth and aspects of everyday life. She has presented her work in the Kunsthalle Basel, Bonner Kunstverein and Museum of Contemporary Photography in Chicago. She has been represented at group exhibitions in the White Unicorn, Klatovy (2024), Kunsthaus Muerz, Mürzzuschlag (2023), and in the House of Art, Ostrava (2022). Her recent solo exhibitions have been held in Veletržní palác, Prague (2022), Fotograf Gallery, Prague (2019) and the Fait Gallery MEM, Brno (2018).
The action and conceptual artist Jiří Kovanda (*1953) is known for his minimalist actions that question ordinary situations and interpersonal relationships. In the 1970s, he attracted attention with public performances that responded to the surrounding space and invited random passers-by to participate. His work focuses on the ephemeral, the banality of everyday life and interaction with the audience. His best-known actions include On the Escalator and Necklace. In recent years he has participated in exhibitions in the Vancouver Art Gallery, Vancouver (2024), Pragovka Gallery, Prague (2024) and the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis (2023).
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