Out of Town!

This exhibition, celebrating Jindřich Štreit's 80th birthday, presents a unique dual portrait of this extraordinary personality – as both a photographer and a cultural organizer. However, it is by no means an assessment of someone slowing down. On the contrary. The artist's exhibition, Out of Town!, which takes place from May 21 to September 6, 2026, at the Olomouc Museum of Art, shows that vitality, an interest in others, and a desire to be active can accompany a person throughout life, regardless of age.

The exhibition presents two important aspects of Štreit's work: his photographic output from the 1980s and his long-term curatorial work at the former school in Sovinec. Both are united by one theme – a deep interest in people and their everyday lives.

About the exhibition

EXHIBITION: Out of Town! Jindřich Štreit's photographic and curatorial work

DATE: May 21 – September 6, 2026 / extended to October 18, 2026

OPENING: May 21, 2026, at 6:30 PM

VENUE: Museum of Modern Art, Salon and Cabinet

CURATORS: Štěpánka Bieleszová, Arkadiusz Gola

ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN: Štěpánka Bieleszová

GRAPHIC DESIGN: Petr Šmalec

PREPRESS: Martin Navrátil

INSTALLATION: Vlastimil Sedláček, Filip Šindelář, Radka Žáková

COLLABORATION:

Department of Collections and Documentation (Zdeněk Sodoma), Conservation Department (Jakub Barna, Veronika Langer Klimszová, Anna Píšťková, Gabriela Polívková)

The exhibition was created in collaboration with Galeria Fotografii Miasta Rzeszowa and Muzeum Górnictwa Węglowego w Zabrzu.

THANKS TO: Piotr Piech, Galeria Fotografii Miasta Rzeszowa

Museum open: Wednesday–Sunday, 10 AM to 6 PM

ACCOMPANYING EXHIBITION PROJECTS:

Lenka Zavadilová. Lubawka Railway Station | May 23 – September 13, 2026 | Amadeus Coffee & Wine

Zuzana Fajmonová. Pop Art | March 2 – June 30, 2026 | Bistro Central | 1st floor

People first

The first part of the exhibition presents previously unpublished photographs from the 1980s, taken in the former Sudetenland. The author took them then but never exhibited them. They are coming to life only now, after many decades.

It is not just a document of the countryside before 1989. Štreit captures interpersonal relationships, traditions, joys, and hardships of everyday life. In his images, the village becomes a miniature model of the entire society. We see cohesion and loneliness, fatigue and hope.

What is essential, however – his photographs are neither a sensation nor a distant critique. They arose from a personal relationship, from trust and long-term contact with local people. Štreit never stood aside. He was part of the environment he photographed. And it is this humanity that gives his images strength even after decades.

Jindřich Štreit, untitled, 1982–1983

The courage to create even in difficult times

The second part of the exhibition commemorates Štreit's curatorial activity in Sovinec, where, since 1974, he created a meeting place for artists outside official cultural centers. During normalization, under the supervision of censorship and state power, he managed to build a space for free exchange of opinions and creation.

1982 brought a dramatic turning point – he was accused of defaming the republic. This experience would have broken many. For him, however, it strengthened his resolve to continue. Even though he could only exhibit limitedly and primarily in alternative spaces, he never stopped creating or supporting others.

Marie Blabolilová, untitled, 1988–1989. Jindřich Štreit Collection

Activity as a life attitude

Jindřich Štreit's life shows that activity is not a matter of age but of attitude. Throughout his life, he has been interested in social issues, in people on the margins of society, in those who are not very visible. He photographed seniors, people with disabilities, people in difficult life situations. Always with respect and empathy.

His story can be an inspiration: each of us can be active within our possibilities. Someone helps with photography, another with volunteering, caring for loved ones, or an interest in neighbors. The important thing is not to remain indifferent.

The exhibition Out of Town! thus fundamentally does not look back to the past. Rather, it testifies to the fact that even at eighty, one can be full of energy, interest, and a desire to create. And that an active life, openness to others, and a willingness to help give human old age depth and meaning.