CGD

Tadeáš Podracký ranks among the few Czech artists capable of sophistically balancing on the border between fine and applied arts. In his work, he generally ponders over what motivates individuals to create works of art, design or architecture, and asks about the differences between the roles played by human instincts and mere cultural expectations. The results are spectacular and, simultaneously, purely speculative forms that disrupt the stereotypes in the appearance of traditional furniture and other objects. At Designblok 2017, the designer presented two new projects at the same time: a mirror for the exhibition You Live by Your Heart, and a collection of lighting objects, My Utopia. In the first case, he interpreted the motif of a heart as both a vitally important organ and a cultural and historical phenomenon, translating it into a dynamic mirror object. He created a complex abstract solitaire piece, where the reflecting surfaces blend with the construction itself. This results in a symbolic as well as functional interior object of sharp, irregular edges and trapezoids, which become the author's peculiar morphology. The second topical project, My Utopia, focuses on the atmosphere of global metropolises which the author recently visited. Here, Podracký visually deconstructs neon signs and billboards to create barely definable objects expressing the utopian character of large urban wholes. Podracký incorporated neon lighting to organic constructions of steel and glass, thus making them the bearers of his own utopian vision.

Adam Štěch