Zbyněk Sekal: Sekal 100 at Museum Kampa – A Centenary Exhibition Retrospective

This exhibition celebrates the centenary of Zbyněk Sekal's birth, showcasing his work from the 1940s to the 1970s. It explores his artistic journey, influenced by concentration camp experiences, Central European modernism, and Japanese art, highlighting his focused statements on existence and hidden intimacy.

The exhibition at the Kampa Museum, marking the centenary of Zbyněk Sekal's birth (1923–1998), focuses on his significant creative output from the 1940s to the 1970s, prior to his emigration. Sekal's work is presented as deeply rooted in the Central European modernist tradition with influences from Japanese art, achieving a focused and intimate statement on fundamental human existence. The early trauma of his concentration camp experiences (Pankrác, Terezín, Mauthausen) profoundly shaped his art, evident in intimate sketches of fragile figures grappling with identity and the existential weight of human experience. The exhibition charts his development from these camp drawings through post-war works to his initial composite paintings, also acknowledging his translation work and book cover designs. Highlighting his relationships with contemporaries, particularly Mikuláš Medek, the exhibition also features works created during Sekal's DAAD scholarship in Berlin (1969-1970), a period leading to his decision to leave Czechoslovakia. The latter part of the exhibition includes his 'Shri nes' created during his twenty-eight years in Vienna alongside Christine, symbolizing the second phase of his artistic career. Sekal's unique artistic language is noted for its ability to intersect personal experience, trauma, and philosophical inquiry, notably aligning with Heidegger's phenomenology in addressing profound questions of human existence and the passage of time.

This exhibition is part of the Kampa Museum's offerings. Visitors are directed to the museum's general admission and ticketing information for details on access and booking, as specific exhibition pricing is not provided on this page.