Jiří Petrbok is a mystic and alchemist by nature. The psychological background of his works is framed by his interest in Jungian archetypes, which accompany him on his journeys through his own subconscious. Together with these unconscious and unplanned worlds, a number of "ordinary things" from the artist's surroundings get onto the canvas, without him himself having control over the very process of connecting, assembling or, conversely, disassembling them. At the beginning, there is a certain number of ingredients from which the artist cooks the resulting dish in a complex process of partly conscious and partly unconscious creation.

In Petrbok's work, endless imagination naturally intertwines with subject forms, while the artist himself often refers to himself as a sculptor rather than a painter. And it doesn't matter at all that he doesn't carve stone and haul bags of plaster. In short, Jiří Petrbok does not create pictures, but sculptures — beings. And they live in the given environment in their own strange, egotistical, often unruly way. It might seem that they do not consider their surroundings or the viewer, but they know about him very well, sometimes they even look directly at us, provoking us. They are strange animated mannequins with the rest of humanity, phantoms filled with terrifying qualities, threatening everything around and finding themselves in difficult situations unable to breathe, move, see. Their bodies are subjected to invisible torture — stretched on an invisible vise, dissolved by unknown chemicals, burned by an unquenchable fire. The environment in which they move is mostly real. The artist creates a space into which he brings sculptures and other "junk" and creates an object carrying countless references, symbols, metaphors. The viewer is cordially invited to visit to experience everything deeply disturbing and at the same time wonderfully crazy.

The presence of real useful things is important for Petrbok. Objects such as drills, vacuum cleaners, brooms, hair dryers, gloves, exercise machines, spacesuits or gas masks are reference points that help the artist not lose contact with reality, even if in the context of the painting these practical things somehow fail due to their original character. However, they are also part of the necessarily present humor and irony that will encourage us whenever we stop hoping. It is also typical for Petrbok to use motifs from the works of other artists, whether from history or the present. The inclusion of the sculptures of the Chapman brothers or Cindy Sherman's photographs is a bit of an endorsement and completes the fantastic and at the same time real picture full of archetypal contents.

The unusual and extreme formats of the works refer to Petrbok's interest in transitional periods of art history. Narrow and disproportionately high canvases, together with wild colors, violations of symmetry and deformation strongly resemble the principles of Mannerism. The musicality of the works is also evident. The individual elements in the picture can remind us of the tones that the artist as a composer adds or subtracts, and in a lively, energetic work he boldly mixes the harsh and screeching sounds of death metal with the delicately noble tones of classical music. In this way, some beings in Petrbok's paintings can remind us of the author himself, who moves around the studio with his phantoms as if deprived of his senses, only to exchange this occult dance in an instant for a peaceful, almost spiritual passage through the universe of the unconscious.

Kristýna Jirátová, exhibition curator

_Jiří Petrbok (born 1962) studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague from 1984 to 1990 with prof. Radomír Kolář and prof. Jiří Sopko. From 1995 he worked here as an assistant professor in the drawing studio of prof. Jitka Svobodová. From 2011 until this year, he led this studio. Jiří Petrbok's work is represented in numerous important collections, for example in the National Gallery in Prague, in the Prague City Gallery and other private collections in the Czech Republic and abroad. He has been presented in a large number of exhibitions in the Czech Republic and has also exhibited abroad alongside international stars such as the Chapman brothers or Maurizio Catellan. 
He lives and works in Prague._


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The festive opening of the exhibition JIŘÍ PETRBOK: IS THIS EVEN POSSIBLE?!

Petrbok

Olsi Leka – cello
Peter Caelen – piano

Programme :

Igor Stravinsky: Suite Italienne
I. Introduzione (allegro moderato)
II. Serenata (Larghetto)
III. Aria
IV. Tarantaella (Vivace)
V. Minueto e Finale

Robert Schumann: Adagio and Allegro, op. 70

Antonín Dvořák: Silent Woods, op.68 No.5

César Franck: Sonata in A major, FWV 8
I. Allegretto ben moderato
II. Allegro
III. Recitativo - Fantasia: Ben moderato - Molto lento
IV. Allegretto poco mosso

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PH Concert Series: Love and Passion

Love and Passion

On November 17th, the Czech Republic commemorates two historically significant events. On November 17, 1939, which was eventually declared International Student Day, the Czech universities were closed by the Nazi occupiers and patriotic students were executed. On November 17, 1989, on the 50th anniversary of the events of the occupation period a demonstration took place, which grew into a protest against the communist regime of the time and, as a result, marked the beginning of the Velvet Revolution and, with it, the return of Czechoslovakia to the family of European democracies.

Public could join the commemorations traditionally by the candle lighting at the Havel's Place at 17:00 with the Ambassador Edita Hrdá.

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Struggle for Freedom and Democracy Day and International Students' Day

Struggle for Freedom and Democracy Day and the International Students' Day

Ukraine has been suffering from Russia´s agression for almost two years now, and the pressure on its possible membership to the EU and NATO is expontially increasing. While many EU politicians and experts are debating when Ukraine will be accepted into the EU, some voice a more skeptical point of view - is it truly about when or rather if? Ukraine´s membership would pose a significant challenge for the EU as a whole, as well as for individual member states. The membership would put a major strain on the EU´s finances and Ukraine would become a major net recepient of aid. Ukraine is not called a granary of Europe for no reason and, as an EU member, it would become the biggest recipient of CAP (Common Agricultural Policy) funding at a cost to the other member states. Ukraine has made clear it wants to be accepted by the EU (and NATO). On the other hand there is a growing cloud over the EU on whether the member states will find common ground on EU enlargement.

How can we convince EU citizens that accepting Ukraine into the EU is the right thing when for most of them it would mean tightening their belts and lowering their living standards? Ukraine would become one of the biggest and poorest member states. Is the EU structurally ready to accept such a challenge?

Welcome Speech: Alva Finn, Executive Director, European Liberal Forum

Speakers: Edita Hrdá, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the Czech Republic to the EU

Kira Rudyk, Vice President, ALDE Party; Member of Parliament, Ukrainian Parliament

Ondřej Knotek, Member, European Parliament

Tony Barber, Europe Editor, Financial Times

Host: Jan Macháček, Chairman of the Board, Institute for Politics and Society


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DEBATE: The Future of European Integration of Ukraine

The Future of European Integration of Ukraine

This year, the Václav Havel European Dialogues focused on the geopolitical issue of proximity and cooperation of neighbouring countries on foreign policy, the official title was: How can the EU bring its neighbours closer in the changing world order? Opportunities, challenges and the role of the civil society.

The geopolitical situation in Europe is changing dramatically in response to the Russian violence in Ukraine. Many European countries are now faced with the question of how to manage and formulate their foreign policy. The European Union has always been a good advisor in such situations, both for the member states and for the EU neighbourhood, and through reforms it has consolidated democratic processes and ideas concerning their internal and cross-border cooperation. But can the EU help now?

One of the main topics of Václav Havel was the anchoring of civil society in the running of the state. In countries with working democracy, there must be an active civil society that monitors policy changes and provides feedback not only to governments but also to other powerful institutions. This is why we need NGOs. But how does the mentioned geopolitical situation affect them?

Speakers:

Jan Lipavský
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic

Edita Hrdá
Permanent Representative of the Czech Republic to the EU

Jakub Skalník
Ambassador of the Czech Republic to the Kingdom of Belgium

Gert-Jan Koopman
Director General at DG NEAR of the European Commission

Daliborka Uljarević
Executive Director of Centre for Civic Education

Victoria Voytsitska
International Center for Ukrainian Victory

Moderator: Eva Hrnčířová

Organisers of EDVH in Brussels are Permanent Representation of the Czech Republic to the European Union, Embassy of the Czech Republic to the Kingdom of Belgium, Czech Centre Brussels, Library of Václav Havel, co-organiser is Prague House. 

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Václav Havel European Dialogues 2023

edvh

The event was attended by the representatives of Belgium, the EU and NATO, the diplomatic corps, representatives of the business, cultural and educational spheres, Czech compatriots and other friends of the Czech Republic.


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Reception on the occasion of the Independent Czechoslovak State Day

Reception

Czech Chamber Music

Charlène Deschamps – flute, piccolo
Sébastien Vanlerberghe – oboe
Daniel Mourek – clarinet
Benjamin Dieltjens – bass clarinet
Tobias Knobloch – bassoon
Michaela Bůžková – horn

Program
A. Rejcha: Wind Quintet in E-flat major, Op. 88, No. 2
I. Lento - Allegro moderato
II. Scherzo. Allegro
III. Andante grazioso
IV. Finale. Allegro molto

A. Dvořák: “American” Quartet, op. 96 (1st and 3rd movement)
transcribed for Woodwind Quintet by David Walter
I. Allegro ma non troppo
III. Molto vivace

L. Janáček: Mládí (Youth), Wind Sextet
I. Allegro
II. Andante sostenuto
III. Vivace
IV. Allegro animato

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PH Concert Series: Czech Chamber Music

czech chamber music

The goal of the event was to establish and strengthen cooperation between the UK and graduates living in Belgium. The meeting was also attended by the representatives of the university who presented the current challenges within their agendas.

[Registration to the Alumni Club](https://cuni.cz/UKEN-403.html)

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Brussels Gathering of Alumni and Friends of the Charles University

Charles University

The panellists Jaroslav Miller (Ministerstvo školství, mládeže a tělovýchovy), Jiří Přibáň (Cardiff University) and Otakar Fojt (British Embassy Prague) shared their knowledge and insights on the current situation, both in the field of education and research. 



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EduCafé: University Cooperation After Brexit: Focus on Czechia & UK

educafe

Taking its inspiration from many different historical styles at the same time as upholding artistic creativity, the eclectic movement (1830-1914) was based on a vision of the city and architecture that brought together art, history and innovation. This heritage-blending movement fully took into account the diversity of its (re)sources, and ran parallel with a precise understanding of older architectural heritage and a desire to create unique and even iconic designs. It began against a background of unprecedented urban growth at a key moment for the capital city of the newly independent Belgium. The eclectic movement created a new urban look, developed around buildings that wanted to set themselves apart from each other, while at the same time all being involved in the expansion of the city.

Exceptionally, the hotels Campioni, Boël and Puccini, the former homes of architects Paul Saintenoy and Jean-Baptiste Timmermans, and the Bertha Harmand and Résimont houses (now Prague House) were all opening their doors to the public.

Nearly 200 guests took the guided tour of the Prague House in Brussels during this event.

For almost a quarter of a century, Bosmans and Vandeveld were the preferred architects of the Solvay industrialists, for whom they created a castle residence, office buildings and the famous Solvay Library, but also the Tour & Taxis or the l’Athénée Léon Lepage.
Blithely crossing the architectural trends to which they adapted their projects: Flemish neo-Renaissance, eclecticism, rationalism and Art Nouveau.

The house on Avenue Palmerston 16 bears witness to their mastery of various historical styles, with its sober facade in blue and white stone with Baroque or Empire decorative elements, the interior with an Empire living room and a neo-style dining room. -Flemish Renaissance typical of this era, and still decorated with its original, richly carved furniture. 

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BRUSSELS BIENNALE OF ECLECTIC ARCHITECTURE

BBEA

Vladimír Kokolia (born in 1956) is one of the most important contemporary Czech artists. Kokolia gained international attention at the beginning of the 1990s, which led to exhibitions of his works at documenta (Kassel, Germany); the Third Eye Center (Glasgow, UK); the Ludwig Forum (Aachen, Germany); S.M.A.K. (Gent, Belgium); the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts; the Walker Hill Art Center (Seoul, South Korea); the Otis/Parsons Gallery (Los Angeles, USA); PS1 (New York, USA) and many others. More recently, he presented major solo exhibition projects at MOCA in Chengdu, China, and at the IKON Gallery in Birmingham, UK. Besides being an artist, he was also the lead singer and lyricist of the legendary Czech underground rock band “E”. His deep philosophical and spiritual explorations in a variety of practices are reflected in his art. Kokolia is also committed to art education and has taught many outstanding young artists for nearly 30 years at the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague.

In the early 1980s Kokolia began applying the concept of “stereograms” to his works as yet another level of the viewer’s involvement in the image space. The gloom and the metaphor of vain pursuit taken to the extreme, became a harbinger of his future drawings known as the Lesser and Greater cycle. The birth of these drawings is connected with the period of basic military service in the first half of the 80s, when Kokolia practically abandoned the medium of painted images. In them, the existential oppression is brought to a state of crazy irony, which he also begins to develop in his graphic works at about the same time. Sketching quickly with bold lines, he simplified individuals as worm-like characters in a variety of absurd scenarios in which they resisted fate and fought to survive. They often find themselves trapped in bizarre, illogical predicaments they cannot escape, but their strenuous efforts to disentangle themselves are both funny and futile. Kokolia once shared the motivation that drove him to create these works: “I’m fascinated by the gulf between the utter matter-of-factness with which we accept our daily routines and the obvious senselessness of it all.”

A part of the exhibition are also Illustration for the samizdate edition of Orwell's novel 1984 and Illustration for an unknown short story published by samizdate in 1981. Recent oil paintings such as Under the walnut (2020), Leaves (2020), Inside (2020) and Wave Theory I (2023) can be seen at the Prague House Gallery.

The event was accompanied by a musical performance by Albert Romanutti, frontman of the popular Czech band Bert & Friends.

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The festive opening of the exhibition VLADIMÍR KOKOLIA: 1984

Kokolia

The guests had the unique opportunity to take a guided tour and to discuss and learn more about the project directly from the young artists. A part of the event was also a small workshop on the processing of the cattail given by Adam Kvaček.

"Our project presents the results of the collaboration between the „Beautiful Work“ Project and the Product Design Studio / D3 at Prague's UMPRUM. The individual projects reflect the current attitudes of design students towards the craft tradition, as well as their approaches to the rehabilitation of the craft genre and its inclusion among competitive products on the current market, which is precisely what the Beautiful Work Project strives for.

This colaboration follows six-months of the work of students who documented their personal approach to using traditional craft motifs in their projects. The D3 Studio used the opportunity created by this cooperation not only to design new products into which traditional craft approaches could be applied but, above all, as a vehicle by which to think about the future of traditional crafts as such and overall. The students searched for possibilities by which to combine craft concepts with design as a comprehensive discipline that can offer varied solutions and raise stimulating questions. The fusion of academic endeavours thus provided a space in which to create works that have the potential to influence the future of the preservation of traditional crafts in the long term, and not just its use for decorative purposes, as crafts are often perceived today.
In considering the preservation of craft traditions, it is necessary to explore not only the technological limits of individual crafts, but to use them in the production of products with a contemporary face. In order for a craft to become timeless and its practices to be sustainable into the future, it is necessary to find its place in the present and to think critically about its strengths and weaknesses."

Exhibitors: Sofia Artemeva, Tereza Bláhová, Miloslav Chytil, Ivo Jedlička, Sára Kučerová, Adam Kvaček, Jan Lechner, Mikuláš Procházka, and Karolína Vintrová

Curator of the exhibition: Adam Kvaček

Pedagogical leadership: Michal Froněk and Jan Němeček (Heads of the studio), Michal Malášek (assistant professor)

Production, and installation design: Adam Kvaček, Ivo Jedlička, and Jan Lechner

Graphic design: Oskar Koutný

The exhibition was a part of the Brussels Design September Festival.

The event was accompanied by DJ Chris the Dancer.



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The festive opening of the exhibition VLADIMÍR KOKOLIA: 1984

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