Knupp gallery and Josef Fořtl's family (1942-2021)
cordially invite you to the exhibition
"THE UNIVERSE WITHIN US"
opening on 14.3.24 from 7 pm
Revoluční 17, Prague 1
Introductions: Doc. Ing. Prof. Prokop Toman, CSc.
The exhibition will run until 7.4.24
MO by appointment
TUE - FRI 10:30 am - 7 pm
SAT 11 am - 6 pm
Josef Fořtl (1942 - 2021) was an industrial artist and designer. He left behind about 50 paintings. A selection from his blue and red periods will be on display at the exhibition "The Universe in Us".
In the first half of his life, he chose the surrealist method of chaining ideas for the themes of his works. However, the objects depicted are not a free flow of associations, their selection is purposeful, they are the building material for the expression of thoughts and reflections. In the later stages of his painting, the surrealist method of chaining images gives way to a symbolic expression of reality.
These two periods - the Blue Period (the 1990s) and the Universe within us (the beginning of the millennium) are presented in our gallery. The Blue Period paintings are characterised by the dominant blue colour and the representation of a double space - limited, restricted and open. The limited space is depicted by a corridor that opens into the open space.
In the limited space of the paintings, our lives take place. The limited space, however, also represents the limits of our existences, which are determined by time, place and circumstances of our birth and our genetic make-up. The open space in the paintings is not a bleak abyss, but an open possibility for further human knowledge and thought. It opens up a philosophical question about the possibility and limits of human knowledge and thought.
In the last phase of his work, "The Universe in Us" (the beginning of the millennium), the artist attempted to depict man as part of the universe. The stars above us, distant and mysterious, helped to give man direction in his exploration of new parts of our planet Earth. He humanized their various groupings, appearing in different parts of the sky throughout the year, by giving them names: the constellations of Aries, Scorpio, Libra, Virgo, Gemini, etc. Scientific progress only reveals the secrets of the universe. The artist suspects the existence of a multidimensional dimension of our world whose mystery must be accepted as part of our lives.
