Adorned with neon yellow posters and matching sidewalk paint, the once-abandoned Bellevue Palace overlooking the Prague Castle, transformed into a contemporary art museum in September.
Located on the Smetana Embankment, the Bellevue Palace itself has a history with artists, once housing late Austrian painter and writer Oskar Kokoschka and Czechoslovak Puppeteer Jiří Trnk.
“The Index serves as a guide for the wider public as well as collectors and investors, helping them navigate the dynamic landscape of the Czech art world.” said Exhibition Curator Valérie Horváth.
The gutted building transformed into a mixed-media gallery for the three-day span. Daniel Pitín’s “Rozbité Okno” video story, Jakob Choma’s spatial Installations “RecOVERy” were among the selected works and Jan Vytiska’s large-scale Moravian Wallachia inspired oil paintings brought a mysticism to the building.
J&T Banka Art Index, a private and investment bank in the Czech Republic, unveiled recent works by 50 prominent Czech artists–featuring over 150 art installations ranging from paintings and sculptures to video stories.
Anglo-American University Professor Josef Záruba-Pfeffermann, who attended the pop-up with his students, questioned the intentions of the Index.
“One should not forget, this was all organized by a financial group, that hopes to monetize these cultural activities,” said Záruba-Pfeffermann.
However, Matěj Radosta, a student at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague and a current employee at the exhibition, urges the public to take advantage of free events like the pop-up, which are more involved in public showcases.
Find out more information about the art featured at the event here.
