Sovak. clear vision[s]
02 Sep - 23 Oct 2016
SOVAK. CLEAR VISION[S]
02 September – 23 October 2016
Under the patronage of the Czech Embassy, the Kunsthalle Manheim has dedicated a retrospective to the Bohemian-born artist Pravoslav Sovak to mark his ninetieth birthday. The artist, who has lived in Switzerland since 1969, ranks among the most internationally significant graphic designers of his generation. Alongside his participation in the 36th Venice Biennale in 1972, his highly respected works may be found in public collections such as the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Albertina in Vienna and the British Museum in London.
His works, most of which can be arranged into groups or series, are concerned with sociopolitical and philosophical themes, as well as existential questions. Other topics depicted in his works include landscapes rich in atmosphere, reflections from museums and travels, and skyline and desert scenes. Sovak, a master of the printing process, creates his often poetic worlds of images using laborious, almost alchemical techniques. He prints his works following a highly complicated process using up to eight different plates; he perfects photographic etchings; enjoys collaged compositions and watercolor-like layers; and his finely balanced nuances make almost every print an original. Moreover, collages containing aspects of his life, as well as larger digital pieces, are characteristic of his later work. From a design perspective, his work is dominated by precise, almost minimalist structures, webs, and grids remarkable for their delicate veil-like effects and the fleeting power of their object-ness. As part of the exhibition, Kunsthalle Manheim has compiled a catalog raisonné of his graphic prints and collages from 1995 to the present day, which was published on the occasion of the exhibition opening. The relevance of his themes and the attractive brilliance of his techniques are heightened by references to Cubism, Minimalism and Pop Art and extend an invitation to engage with (graphic) art.
02 September – 23 October 2016
Under the patronage of the Czech Embassy, the Kunsthalle Manheim has dedicated a retrospective to the Bohemian-born artist Pravoslav Sovak to mark his ninetieth birthday. The artist, who has lived in Switzerland since 1969, ranks among the most internationally significant graphic designers of his generation. Alongside his participation in the 36th Venice Biennale in 1972, his highly respected works may be found in public collections such as the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Albertina in Vienna and the British Museum in London.
His works, most of which can be arranged into groups or series, are concerned with sociopolitical and philosophical themes, as well as existential questions. Other topics depicted in his works include landscapes rich in atmosphere, reflections from museums and travels, and skyline and desert scenes. Sovak, a master of the printing process, creates his often poetic worlds of images using laborious, almost alchemical techniques. He prints his works following a highly complicated process using up to eight different plates; he perfects photographic etchings; enjoys collaged compositions and watercolor-like layers; and his finely balanced nuances make almost every print an original. Moreover, collages containing aspects of his life, as well as larger digital pieces, are characteristic of his later work. From a design perspective, his work is dominated by precise, almost minimalist structures, webs, and grids remarkable for their delicate veil-like effects and the fleeting power of their object-ness. As part of the exhibition, Kunsthalle Manheim has compiled a catalog raisonné of his graphic prints and collages from 1995 to the present day, which was published on the occasion of the exhibition opening. The relevance of his themes and the attractive brilliance of his techniques are heightened by references to Cubism, Minimalism and Pop Art and extend an invitation to engage with (graphic) art.