This small exhibition by Eva Vlčková and Petr Vlček obviously can’t cover the full range of their work, but it can at least provide a glimpse of their distinctive expressive language.
Petr Vlček is part of the generation of artists who emerged at the end of the 1980s and in an individualistic way utilized the legacy of various, sometimes seemingly contradictory, artistic currents from the past. One can recognize in his work the influence of Symbolism as well as a Cubist-derived formal vocabulary and method of conceptualization. At the same time, his bronze and glass sculptures and also his paintings have their own characteristic style. They manifest a rhythm of repeated or multiplied shapes, which amplifies the artist's statement. Of course, maximal simplification is also important for him, enabling the artist to express his ideas even more convincingly. While in the past his objects referred more to observable reality, to human or animal forms, in recent years they have steadily become cleaner and more abstract. Although symbols remain latently present, we encounter them in a slightly different form, even in works from his earlier period. His vocabulary is based not only on the interpenetration and layering of delicate forms, on an exploration of the relationship between the vigorous present and the still-inspiring past, but also on a perfectly mastered technical approach. The artist often produces his sculptures from start to finish by himself, having developed the demanding skills that many other artists entrust to specialized glass studios.
The glass sculptures of Eva Vlčková are very pared down, with all expressive elements in balance. The artist is able to utilize the possibilities of her chosen material without emphasizing the effects which can easily be achieved with glass. With maximum economy, she links to Minimalist tendencies and also to the interwar avant-garde. Her objects are sometimes slightly suggestive of the straight-forward utility of architectural designs. Their forms subtly interpenetrate, and the artist exactingly manipulates the ratio between the simple geometric shapes and the whole to achieve a balanced composition. An important role also is played by light, which penetrates through the objects with varying intensity and colour. This is sensitively selected for each sculpture and must be in agreement with its harmonious proportions, whether interpenetrating curves or lines and planes. We can see how Eva Vlčková is able to balance internal and external space in a way that inventively builds on her previous developments. It is admirable that she manages to resist the seductive charms of glass, which some artists deploy in an impressive but empty technical game. The expression of Eva Vlčková has developed naturally; the artist does not settle for barren virtuosity, but rather aims for harmonious at the same time always measured compositions.
At first glance, the artistic paths of Eva and Petr Vlček are different, yet they are connected by a close aesthetic point of departure and a mastery of their craft, without which they could not realize their demanding conceptions.
Jiří Machalický