A contemporary spacious gallery with sensitively designed lighting, unusually high ceilings and built-in audiovisual technology which allows for both traditional photography exhibitions, and also multimedia projects. The area is also designed for exhibiting larger sculptures and installations, and as such it does not focus only on photography, and will also seek opportunities from conceptual artists. The exhibition space, which takes up the largest area in the whole project, links directly to a café and outdoor gallery.
Exhibitions
The Czech Photo Centre’s events programme is specific, flexibly encompassing events in the field, communicating to photographers, specialists and the general public and it can be met on a long-term basis. Its launch exhibition was of world renowned photography agency VII, one of whose founding members is Antonín Kratochvíl, followed by the excellent Jaroslav Kučera with his Sudetenland exhibition, and Grant Prahy holder Martin Frouz and his unconventional monitoring of historic sites in Prague.
Open air gallery
Art is not just for galleries and cafés, but above all for the streets, amongst the people. It should please and inspire us and make us think even during our normal routine.
A leisure zone is located in the outdoor area right in front of the interior gallery, set with double-sided exhibition panels which allow for the installation of exhibitions which can be conceived as linked to the indoor exhibition. The public space in front of the centre also includes a sculpture by famed Czech artist David Černý which has a bespoke design for the photography centre. This sculpture is part of the project and is a conspicuous and dominating feature of the area.
Trifot
The twelve-metre TRIFOT sculpture, made from stainless steel with various surface treatments represents the form of a striding creature made from a number of cameras (real brands and models) and tripod legs which has come alive. The range of cameras represents the evolution of photography over the last few decades. It is also the embodiment of the fact that in the current world almost everyone can take a picture or video at anytime and anywhere on the planet. TRIFOT, using camera lenses, is watching its surroundings and displaying selected passersby on large screens. In its creation, the work’s author was also inspired by one of the most well-known science fiction books, The Day of the Triffids by British author John Wyndham. The fact its head comprises cameras of all the brands you could think up means one thing – the CZECH PHOTO CENTRE is designed for all those who enjoy photography, not just one particular group.
The huge 12-metre high TRIFOT with its multimedia elements (six screens showing the movement of passersby) brings a dynamism to the CZECH PHOTO CENTRE surroundings and attracts the interest of visitors. The objective is to create an artist’s zone outside the city centre where we can confront art works with people passing by and make them think.
The entire surroundings of the Czech Photo Centre aim to provide fulfilment to young people in particular, but not just them. It aims to draw ‘ordinary’ Prague citizens into the artistic process, and to become a place where they can encounter the works of leading Czech and international photographers and street art installations; to create an artist’s zone outside the city centre.