In Defiance. The Exhibition of Mikuláš Medek and Jan Koblasa in Teplice in 1963

The project explores the legendary exhibition by Mikuláš Medek and Jan Koblasa, featuring works by both artists from 1959–1963 as well as 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 of Czech Informel, which had until then been blacklisted by the regime, and indeed by key representatives of this movement.

It was extraordinary in itself that the exhibition took place at all, despite previous bans. 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. By September 1963, he had been removed from this position for being too accommodating. This brief period later came to be known by the biblical term “the Summer of Grace.”

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 developed 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 both 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.

In Defiance. The Exhibition of Mikuláš Medek and Jan Koblasa in Teplice in 1963 -