Rising above the industrial landscape, the new Dvorecký Bridge is set to open on Apr. 17 of this year to pedestrians, cyclists, and trams connecting Zlíchov in the west to Podolí in the east showcasing an installation of lamps from 80 different countries.
Renowned Czech artist and sculptor Krištof Kintera discussed the project at AAU Library’s Art Evening, a semester-long program exploring art, film and literature. As the first guest of the season, Kintera served as a bridge himself, connecting AAU students to the broader Prague art scene.
This ambitious project is the latest work from Kintera, who was asked by the bridge’s architects to design several artistic interventions for both banks. Well-known for using street lamps as a medium for artistic expression, Kintera took the concept further with his centerpiece installation, Light Removes Darkness.
“It’s about synergy of life…It’s about this [typical] fight about good and bad,” Kintera said, describing the importance of the installation’s name. The project has been in development since 2019, as Kintera and his team have collected lamp heads from around the world. By acquiring the lamps without their original poles, Kintera gained the creative freedom to design custom supports based on both the original structures and his own interpretive style.
“Like in a botanical garden, [the lamps] will have labels indicating where [they are] coming from, with the original photos from the original placement, [and] our sketches,” shares Kintera. The installation will serve a dual purpose: the utilitarian function of lighting the path for evening commuters and the figurative goal of brightening the surrounding urban landscape.
The first batch of international lamps was secured through Prague’s partner cities, then the team reached out to Czech Centers and embassies to expand the collection so that pedestrians will walk beneath a global canopy featuring light fixtures from Indonesia, Luxembourg, Mexico, South Korea and New Zealand.
The installation will extend to the Podolí bank, where the 42-by-80-meter area beneath the bridge has been reimagined to include a skate park, an outdoor theater arena and a neo-cubist statue titled Heavy Head Boy.
“It’s a kind of Gesamtkunstwerk in a public space…it should be a place for different social groups,” comments Kintera.
This event marks a collaboration between the AAU and the Visual Art Studies program.
“Content without form in my field doesn’t exist…[they] have to go together. And that’s the goal of a good artwork, that the content is basically materialized by the material,” explains Kintera.
The journey to illuminate Dvorecký Bridge has survived many logistical hurdles. Kintera and his team spent four years navigating complex negotiations with municipal authorities just to secure approval for the project’s lighting systems. Because the use of theatrical lights in a permanent outdoor setting is unprecedented for Prague, the team had to coordinate closely with the bridge’s construction management to meet technical demands.
“Sometimes the idea is very short and very fast and very obvious, but to make it, it [takes] like hundreds of meetings and persuading people,” said Kintera.
Although the project has evolved significantly since its inception in 2019, the installation remains a work in progress, with final touches planned years from now. One thing is certain; Kintera’s contributions have become permanently embedded in Prague’s cultural landscape, leaving a mark that will last long after the final light is installed.
