5 don’t-miss art shows in Prague for the summer of 2020

As one of the safest countries in the European Union, the Czech Republic is now lifting its lockdown restrictions, and Prague’s museums and art venues are reopening for business. Art provides people with an opportunity to broaden their life perspective; whether you study Finance, Sports Management, or Information Technology, developing your visual and conceptual vocabulary will be useful in any Marketing and Communications related classes and modules. If you’ve missed your dose of culture this spring, read on for our selection of the postponed and brand-new art shows that you shouldn’t miss in Prague this summer. Make sure to bring your University of New York in Prague student card, as most venues offer students a 50% discount on tickets. Student discounts are a great way to stay within your student budget, and treat yourself to a coffee and a beautiful dessert after the exhibition.

A student guide to Prague’s best art exhibitions this summer

MICHAËL BORREMANS THE DUCK

When: Until July 26th 

Where: Galerie Rudolfinum

Free admission

You still have a few weeks left to enjoy this profound exhibition of paintings by Belgian artist Michaël Borremans, curated by Rudolfinum Gallery director Petr Nedoma. Borremans has gained a prominent position on the international stage with his innovative approach to painting. His paintings and video installations address universal themes that resonate with contemporary issues, with a strong psychological focus. For the first time, the artist exhibits three of his latest paintings, which he created especially for the Rudolfinum Gallery in the fall of 2019. The highly illusory quality of Borremans’ paintings reveals his great interest in the medium of film and photography. The precise detail and vibrant character of the paintings show his attempt to approach the transcendental dimension of spiritual questions in a slightly ironic tone.

ANTONÍN KRATOCHVÍL: PHOTO ESSAYS

When: from June 12th to October 18th

Where: Stone Bell House, Old Town Square 

Student admission: 60CZK

This retrospective exhibition of the Czech photographer Antonín Kratochvíl presents a selection of his highly expressive, suggestive oeuvre of social documentary photography. In his work, Kratochvíl deals with deprivation, despair, alienation, and misery, as well as the arrogance of power and its consequences in various parts of the world. As a photojournalist, Kratochvíl covered military conflicts in Afghanistan, Bosnia, the Philippines, Haiti, Iraq, Rwanda and Zaire, capturing the tragedy of humanitarian tragedies, natural disasters and the escalated social problems of human society. This exhibition mixes his celebrity photography (including Bill Gates, Willem Dafoe, Keith Richards, Patricia Arquette, Bob Dylan, Billy Bob Thornton and Debbie Harry) with images of unknown people from diverse backgrounds. Living through numerous reversals of fortune and gaining experience, Kratochvíl reflects the state of the human soul in today’s world. 

STONE TREASURES FROM PRAGUE GARDENS

When: May 12th to November 1st

Where: Château Troja 

Student admission: 60 CZK 

If you’ve never visited Château Troja in Prague 7 before, this exhibition is a great reason to go and check out this remarkable early Baroque building. The Stone Treasures from Prague Gardens exhibit presents a wide selection of original sculptures and architectural elements which have gradually disappeared from city gardens, and are stored in the depositories of the Prague City Gallery. This exhibition includes stone fountains with figures of the Nereids and dolphins from Troja Château, which were found in the 1980s during the reconstruction. The show also presents original sculptures from Vrtbovská Garden, Cibulka Park, and Villa Portheimka. 

NO DEMOLITION! FORMS OF BRUTALISM IN PRAGUE

When: March 6th to November 22nd

Where: Trade Fair Palace

Student admission: 80CZK

Continuing the topic of Prague architectural history, this exhibition takes on the rise of Brutalism between the 1960s and 1980s. Hated by some, admired by others, Prague’s Brutalist architecture remains an intensely debated and controversial phenomenon. The “No Demolition!” exhibition explains the compositional and structural values ​​of this architectural era with over 250 original plans, photographs, and models, many of which are on display for the first time. The exhibits are sourced mainly from the architecture collection of the National Gallery of Prague, and includephotographs of the capital’s Brutalist buildings as well as unrealized projects from that era. The exhibition features buildings that significantly affected the quality of the public space around them: the Kotva department store, the former Central Telecommunications Building in Žižkov (currently marked for demolition), the old Federal Assembly building, the Intercontinental Hotel, the Barrandov Bridge and the recently demolished Transgas buildings. All these buildings are and were examples of the most advanced solutions and top artistic concepts at the time. 

RUDOLF SIKORA AND VLADIMÍR HAVLÍK: SNOW STONE STAR TREE

When: May 12th to September 27th

Where: Colloredo-Mansfeld Palace

Student admission: 30czk

This joint exhibition by Rudolf Sikora and Vladimír Havlík becomes a visual dialogue between two artists with different aesthetics yet very similar visions. While Sikora’s objectivization strategy concerns the position of the individual in the cosmos, Havlík turns to social relationships built on non-spectacular gestures. Both artists share the universal themes of people’s relationships to nature and each other, responsibility, an intimate relationship with the world and the cosmos, and building a utopian overlap to direct our thinking about the present towards the desired future.

Photo credits:  National Gallery of Prague