Exhibition HARMONY

Their approach to creative work, the School of Glassmaking in Kamenický Šenov, and the Vysočina region, where they all live, unite František Janák and his guests Martina Janáková and Alena Matějka. Curator of the exhibition Petr Nový decided to call their collective exhibition HARMONY because, “They have a distinguishable authorial signature consisting in the harmony of the techniques chosen and the ideological intent and creative stylisation. Given that reason and feeling are balanced in their works, they are able to easily form an emotional bond with the viewer, to convey to the viewer how they see the world, without forcing it on them.

František Janák mostly creates pieces using the technique of mould-melted glass. The exhibition in Jablonec is dominated by his unique cycle of portraits of figures from the world of history and culture.

Martina Janáková was for many years devoted to authorial ceramics, only moving into glass at a later stage, which makes her rapidly-acquired sovereignty of expression all the more remarkable. The works of Alena Matějka are found in a multitude of public and private collections both in the Czech Republic and abroad. Her work oscillates between ruminating on life and the grotesque, and there is nothing that she would find taboo. She actively seeks out challenges, technological and artistic alike.

The opening of the exhibition dedicated to studio glass was on Thursday, 16th May at 5 p.m.