In the following episodes of our critical series we will focus on the operation of National Gallery in Prague.
Due to the extent and complexity of the issue given we decided to concentrate only on subjects related to the contemporary art operation.
In the first episode we surveyed the criticism of national Gallery from the positions of contemporary artits. Between 2000 and 2011 their activities gained different forms, from protests and demonstrations in front of Veletržní palác to series of more or less legal events and interventions directly in the Collection of Modern and Contemporary Art. The criticism was not institutional in most cases but it rather aimed against the former director Milan Knížák.
A certain catalyst of the events was a conflict between David Černý and Milan Knížák that arised during the installation of the Jindřich Chalupecký Award laureates’ exhibition in 2000. Their dispute culminated when the winnig award was being announced and David Černý accepted his award remonstrantly in front of Veletržní palác. Few months later the Academy of Fine Arts students organized a demonstration against Milan Knížák that resulted in different events of art groups (Pode Bal, Rafani, Guma Guar resp. Milan Knížák) and artists (Avděj Ter-Oganjan, Richard Wiesner, Vojtěch Stoklasa).
An extensive research project of Jesper Alvaer and Isabela Grosse called The National Representation and an event On the Edge of a Hole organized by Rafani in 2006 leave the line by their orientation and generally different approach.
The art theorist Jan Zálešák who also cooperated on the final version of the broadcast, appears in the role of a commentator who puts specific examples and works into a more detailed context.
