The exhibition about the exhibition explores the legendary exhibition by Mikuláš Medek and Jan Koblasa, featuring works by both artists from 1959–1963, as well as through newly discovered photographs by Jiří Hampl. The exhibition, which took place in August 1963 in the castle riding hall in Teplice—then the Klement Gottwald Exhibition Hall at the local museum—became a watershed moment in the development of Czechoslovak modern art. This was because it was the very first public presentation of abstract works by the Czech Informel movement—which had been blacklisted by the regime until then—and featured works by key representatives of this movement.

The mere fact that the exhibition took place at all, despite previous bans, was extraordinary in itself. This was made possible by the appointment of Čestmír Císař as Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia for Science, Education, and Culture in April 1963. He brought an unusually liberal approach to the stifling cultural and social atmosphere, allowed greater freedom of the press, and eased censorship. As early as September 1963, he was removed from this position for being too accommodating. This brief period later came to be known by the biblical term “the gracious summer.”

The magnificent, intellectually focused installation of paintings and sculptures was prepared at that time by both artists in collaboration with curators Věra Linhartová and František Šmejkal and architect Karel Filsak. The current “reconstruction” focuses primarily on the works exhibited at that time; only when these are unavailable are they replaced by alternative exhibits from the same period.

The project was created in collaboration with the Institute of Art History of the Czech Academy of Sciences and the Kampa Museum and is accompanied by a catalog in which the two curators examine in detail the exhibition’s design, the circumstances of its creation, and the subsequent reception. The exhibition is part of the events commemorating the 100th anniversary of Mikuláš Medek’s birth.

Curators: Mahulena Nešlehová, Lenka Bydžovská