intervention_2 Adam Vačkář: First and Last Things 19. 9. 2014 – 1. 2. 2015

The title of this already second exhibition presented in the framework of the Intervention in the Colloredo-Mansfeld Palace paraphrases the eponymous book by H. G. Wells, and accordingly pursues the subject of a spiritually decaying society and the consequences of material overproduction.

The artist returns to the iconographically established genre of “nature morte” which mainly became widespread in the 17th century. Vačkářʼs works, however, are not canvases but photographs of withering or artificial flowers, the latter combined with fresh ones without offering a first-sight distinction between the two. The series of photographs is accompanied by a project entitled Margin of Hope, created in Morocco in early 2014. It documents the clash between consumer society and the original native community and employs plastic bottles as a launching pad for further elaboration, as well as a catalyst of faith in a brighter future. Vačkář reserved some space in the ballroom of the palace for ambient minimalist music and a display of musical scores the “notes” of which he punched out by pistol shots.

Adam Vačkář (*1979) studied at the Prague Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design and at the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-arts in Paris. This is his third exhibition at the Prague City Gallery (following his events “Start-up” and “Gross Domestic Product”).