The exhibition If They Once Bloomed, If They Bloomed at Night can be characterized as an effort to harmonize with both the gallery space and the surrounding landscape. Its main theme lies in an awareness of the value of the interrelationship between knowledge and experience. Despite the very different way we live our lives compared to earlier times, nature remains ever-present in our daily existence. It constantly offers the opportunity to consciously connect with it at any moment—to simply be. For the artist, studying the environment—the results of which form the content of the exhibition—means not only expanding her knowledge but, above all, broadening the spectrum and subtlety of her sensibilities. She is interested in perceiving things purely and austerely.

The limits of what is seen.

The limits of the visible.

The sensitivity of what is seen.

Reaching the limits of our abilities.

Art is about the limits of perception.

Being in harmony with our perception.

Monika Hniková (*1992) studied from 2016 to 2022 at the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague (Sculpture 1 studio, L. Rittstein; Painting 1, R. Šalanda and L. Machalický); in 2019, she completed an internship at the Australian National University in Canberra. Selected exhibitions: Figurama, Hybernská Campus, Prague, 2019, 2020; ZEMITOU, Zelenohorská Pošta Gallery, Nepomuk, 2021; AVU Graduates 2022, Prague; Listen Patiently, Hidden Gallery, Špejchar Měšice, 2022; Forming Storming Norming Performing (with M. Rajchlová), Hidden Republika, Prague, 2022; Urban Harvest, New Delhi, India, 2022 (in collaboration with V. Resslová); Activity (solo exhibition), AXA Storefronts, Prague, 2023; Dyáda (solo exhibition), Studio Prám, Prague, 2024; Unetanneh Tokef (solo exhibition), Palmovka Synagogue, Prague, 2025. In 2024, she undertook an artist residency in Telč, where she explored the theme of the transience of light. 

Curator: Iva Mladičová