METAMORPHOSES

Rupert Kytka, untitled (ball of wires)

The exhibition project refers to the famous work of the ancient poet Publius Ovidius Naso (43 BC-17/18 AD) entitled The Metamorphoses, more precisely to his eighth book of stories from Greek mythology. The common denominator of the extensive poetic work were the physical or spiritual transformations afflicting the gods, humans, animals, and other animate and inanimate nature. These metamorphoses, however, in addition to the miraculous transformation of matter, represented primarily the consequences of divine or human action (love, jealousy, hatred, resentment, self-sacrifice, courage, heroism), and thus also provided the reader with some moral lesson or an ethical example. 

The displayed artworks take you through four interconnected stories (Labyrinth, the struggle between Theseus and Minotaur, Ariadne, Daedalus and Icarus) that in a certain form remain present in our cultural consciousness of today. 

The exhibition also presents special educational exhibits. These will give you a closer look at the material of selected art works. You will get the opportunity to verify with your own senses that any material constantly changes due to the influence of the environment and the effects of time. They are placed here, among other things, as a reminder of the eternal struggle to preserve or save precious artefacts, which is the mission of any museum. The inseparable partners in this endeavour are conservators and restorers, whose work is also presented in detail in our exhibition. 

Exhibitors: Karíma Al-Mukhtarová, Annibale Carracci, Carlo Cignani, Emil Filla, Vladimír Fuka, Monika Havlíčková, Xénie Hoffmeisterová, Zdeněk Hůla, Angelika Kauffmannová, Eva Kmentová, Vlastimil Květenský, Rupert Kytka, Ivana Lomová, Josef Mařatka, Otto Placht, Jiří Rathouský, Jaroslav Róna, Zbyněk Sekal, Josef Šíma, Josef Štursa, Adriena Šimotová.