THINK + feel Contemporary is pleased to present (Un) Attainable Light, a duo exhibition by young Czech artists concurrent participants of TFC, Miami 2022 artist residency program,- Jan Heres and Filip Svehla.

Both are recent graduates of the prestigious Prague Academic Art programs, yet they have already firmly planted their feet in the Czech art scene having found their faithful audiences among collectors and critics alike. Driven by their unquenchable thirst for new inspiration and light, even during their studies they are artists who also happen to be close friends and they have traveled extensively so as to extricate themselves purposefully from their “mundane” autochthonous surroundings. The resulting encounters with this new milieu has proven to be fruitful as it challenged their palettes and approach to their art; By distancing themselves from their traditional habituated approach they manage to accelerate their artistic trajectory and reach the next rung of their artistic and stylistic evolutionary ladder.

Jan and Filip’s invitation to our TFC artist program was both intuitive and purposeful as following the global epidemic -the art residency theme and purpose we believed needed to be reconsidered and convey the optimism felt at the beginning of the year.

Emerging from this long and emotionally trying period we reached out to the artists whose creative pursuit was strongly focused on light and for whom this particular element was a driving artistic motivator and given their youthful optimism we knew they could capture the new emerging Light at the end of the this long tunnel.

While their bags were packed and tickets bought, a day or two before the artists’ departure, the war in Ukraine broke out. The mirage of hope we were allowed to feel was dashed, at least for those -who witnessed the victims of the ongoing war first hand, our founder among them. Thus, the ambiguous title of the exhibition came into being – hope for a new beginning – LIGHT that seemed within reach turned out to be unattainable or was it?

The artists in residence worked assiduously in Miami trying to capture its light, its energy and bring it onto canvas, “materialize” it thus, providing the us, the audience with the so-needed fire so we could reach rapture, transformation that can be experienced only through art.

Miami's light and its natural color inspired a search for its characteristics as the common goal for both artists throughout their residency as well as their resulting thematic exposition. Clearly, the latter is also built on a stylistic figurative versus abstract juxtaposition.

Naturally, Heres’ figurative works reflect the local exoticism in terms of their luminous color, exceptional light as well as the subject matter (Miami Portraits 1-8). Yet, what draws one in and what can’t escape our attention is the range of emotions his Miami subjects are imbued with.

Unprecedented in Jan’s work, they range from sensitivity (Embrace) to "care free-iness", (Miami Sunrise, Girl) to strength and vulnerability (Stare, Moonlit Shadow). This complex scale of emotions- expressed through color -the primary carrier of emotions in Jan’s work- pays homage to his artistic idol, Gauguin. For the color Jan utilizes is closely connected with his experience of themes he approaches. Jan is an intuitive painter who lets himself be guided by the painting process and who is not afraid to give free rein to his unconscious.

Collectively, emotional depth of Heres’ subjects is -though stylized- very palpable, rooted in real life; it is non judgmental while putting up a mirror to each individual consciousness and each individual inner world. Almost exclusively, Jan’s Miami subjects are feminine and feminist – without care about fitting into a simple social categorization in terms of their sexual interest or preferences. This striking feminine and feminist tone is both an exciting as well as appreciated element of his Miami series.

Deceivingly straightforward, Jan’s Miami snapshots, suites are his “ Pictures from the Exhibition” where the Exhibition is Life (as perceived) at this moment in time.

Similarly unassuming –at least on the surface- are expressive abstract geometric minimalist tableaux by Filip Svehla. Yet, these horizontal “puzzles” burst in colors and even a superficial viewer can’t escape their positive energetic charge. These lined structures with their enigmatic potency lead one into the world of hidden geometric depths – a result of the artist's arduous endeavor to shed everything excessive while attempting to capture the essence of light and mood of his surroundings.

Svehla’s extended stay in Miami further propelled his artistic evolution that started a year earlier in Valencia, Spain. The Mediterranean light, local industrial urban environment of peeling plasters, disparate facades and protruding insulation elements of demolished houses for which he as a figurative painter could not find expression, led to his abandoning his comfort and his artistic style. He started producing abstract canvases with thickly applied colors that entice through their surface, complex composite structure and sensory impact.

Miami instilled Svehla with confidence to further confront his own definition of expressive minimalism and expectations associated with the concept and its traditional color scheme, to expound his new artistic language.

His courage paid off as his color fields – particularly in his Zig Zags 1-3 (Homage to Elsworth Kelly) -- prove. Precise yet free, hard-edged yet intuitive, these playful composites demonstrate Svehla’s passion for this newly discovered form and colors. Infused with a new freedom of painterly expression he also allowed himself to work in much larger and more impactful formats. His daring geometric works are playful and pleasing to the eye while their composite elements float suspended, not allowing us to forget the constant, never ceasing movement of the undercurrent of life.

The current exposition is for both artists their inaugural opportunity to present their works to US audiences and we are excited to provide a venue and an expressive outlet.

The exhibition is also available online on Artsy for our global audiences.

For more information or press inquiries please contact:

THINK+feel Contemporary

www.thinkfeelart.com

silvia@thinkfeelart.com

305.204.7484