The project, which has been organised by GASK’s curators Richard Drury, Veronika Marešová, Adriana Primusová, and Vanda Skálová, presents eight artists, all of them distinctive figures on the contemporary Czech art scene: Adéla Matasová (*1940), Lukáš Rittstein (*1973), Dagmar Šubrtová (*1973), Kryštof Hošek (*1984) and Pavel Šimíček (*1981).

The project’s focus is on creating a dialogue between the artworks’ symbolic message and the panoramic setting of the GASK gardens. Against the backdrop of the changing natural scenery, the artworks explore the ‘eternal questions’ of identity and of the problematic
relationship between civilisation and nature within the context of the monumental cultural-spiritual memory of this location. While the conceptual ‘partner’ of the sculpture park at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Denmark is the inspirational view of the sea, at GASK the inspiration comes from the architectural landmarks of the Jesuit College and the Church of St Barbara, and also from the view of Kutná Hora’s historical town centre that has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1995.

Open-air GASK is envisioned as a long-term project through which the gardens will be gradually transformed into a stimulating ‘art zone’ with close ties to the gallery’s exhibition schedule. In the interest of creating a conceptual connection between GASK’s ‘interior’ and ‘exterior’, we have removed the glass information panels located on the site of the Baroque lime kiln behind the south-western part of the Jesuit college. With the addition of benches, the area freed up in this way will offer an attractive place for visitors to rest while also serving as a stage for distinctive works of art capable of communicating with the surrounding historical setting.

Open-air GASK will change the exhibited sculptures and installations on an ongoing basis, thus offering visitors new opportunities for enjoying our gardens as a ‘harbour of comfort
and learning’. At the same time, the works invite visitors to come inside and experience our rich programme of exhibitions and other activities!

See details:

Dagmar Šubrtová – DRY YOUNG TREE and THE ONE WHO WAS FORGOTTEN

Lukáš Rittstein – BIRD OF PARADISE

Kryštof Hošek – THERE IS MORE

Adéla Matasová – RAIN WALL IV

Pavel Šimíček – LAPUTA III and V

Markéta Váradiová – SPRIG

Vratislav Karel Novák, PLANETS – CIRCLES

The Open-air GASK project received financial support from the Town of Kutná Hora.