Artist:
David Černý
Title:
St. Wenceslaus
Year:
1999
Adress:
Lucerna Arcade
www.image-identity.eu:
The horse is upside down and the duke is still riding its dead body; this is a very striking art work by David Cerny, the infamous Czech artist whose controversial works are often installed in public spaces. The Lucerna Passage where the artwork has been installed is a busy place and people passing by are perfectly aware of its meaning, which resonates with a current and historical sense of national identity -- as well as the public perception of the Czech Republic's social and political situation: What kind of people are in power and who are the national elites? What happened to democracy in our country after the second war and why are the Communists still in power as a political party? What is the Czech Republic's position in the EU?
In placing his work in the Lucerna Passage, Cerny highlights its proximity to Wenceslas Square, which has been the central gathering and protest concourse for the Czech peoples, especially in their quest for a self-defined national identity.
Furthermore, the upside-down rider on a dead horse refers directly to the main statue at the top of Wenceslas Square. In the upper part of the legendary Square there is an elevated equestrian statue of the duke Saint Wenceslas by the prominent Czech sculptor Myslbek. The statue was unveiled in 1913 in front of the monumental building of the National Museum and expresses the virtues held very dear in the nation during the long 20th century: Christianity, peace, freedom, national and state sovereignty. The statue and concourse is emblematic of the numerous tragic turning points in the history of our nation: losing independence and state sovereignty on several occasions; waves of forced emigration and executions of the elite; language and national renaissances; the first and second wars; Communist domination after the second war; the Prague Spring and finally, the 1968 Soviet occupation.
Saint Wenceslas is a cult figure, a symbol of the Czech state and national identity since the early middle ages, and has always been an obligatory figure in history education. The two Wenceslases, Myslbek's and Cerny's, create a dialogue between past mythology and contemporary reality, political decay, and the loss of a clear national and democratic direction after liberation from Soviet Union in 1989. In contradiction to one another, the irony and absurdity of Cerny's rider's position and activity raise questions about the"truth" and the making of national mythologies.
www.wikipedia.org:
David Černý (born December 15, 1967) is a Czech sculptor whose works can be seen in many locations in Prague. His works tend to be controversial.
Černý was born in Prague. He gained notoriety in 1991 by painting a Soviet tank pink, to serve as a war memorial in central Prague. As the Monument to Soviet tank crews was still a national cultural monument at that time, his act of civil disobedience was considered"hooliganism" and he was briefly arrested. Another of Černý's conspicuous contributions to Prague is"Tower Babies, " a series of cast figures of crawling infants attached to Žižkov Television Tower.
www.waymarking.com:
Statue of St. Wenceslas mounting a dead horse at the Lucerna arcade in Prague.
The statue by a controversial Czech sculptor David Cerny mirrors the famous statue of St. Wenceslas, patron saint of the Czech state, in Wenceslas Square. For the comical, but also ironical effect, St. Wenceslas is sitting on the belly of his dead horse suspended from the ceiling.
The statue was originally situated at the bottom end of the Wenceslas Square (whereas the original St. Wenceslas dominates the upper end of the square). Nowadays it is kept in the arcade of the Lucerna palace not far from the original site.
The artist made a humorous pact with Dagmar Havlova, the owner of Lucerna, that the sculpture shall not be removed until the constitutional monarchy is restored in the Czech Republic.
The horse is upside down and the duke is still riding its dead body; this is a very striking art work by David Cerny, the infamous Czech artist whose controversial works are often installed in public spaces. The Lucerna Passage where the artwork has been installed is a busy place and people passing by are perfectly aware of its meaning, which resonates with a current and historical sense of national identity -- as well as the public perception of the Czech Republic's social and political situation: What kind of people are in power and who are the national elites? What happened to democracy in our country after the second war and why are the Communists still in power as a political party? What is the Czech Republic's position in the EU?
In placing his work in the Lucerna Passage, Cerny highlights its proximity to Wenceslas Square, which has been the central gathering and protest concourse for the Czech peoples, especially in their quest for a self-defined national identity.
Furthermore, the upside-down rider on a dead horse refers directly to the main statue at the top of Wenceslas Square. In the upper part of the legendary Square there is an elevated equestrian statue of the duke Saint Wenceslas by the prominent Czech sculptor Myslbek. The statue was unveiled in 1913 in front of the monumental building of the National Museum and expresses the virtues held very dear in the nation during the long 20th century: Christianity, peace, freedom, national and state sovereignty. The statue and concourse is emblematic of the numerous tragic turning points in the history of our nation: losing independence and state sovereignty on several occasions; waves of forced emigration and executions of the elite; language and national renaissances; the first and second wars; Communist domination after the second war; the Prague Spring and finally, the 1968 Soviet occupation.
Saint Wenceslas is a cult figure, a symbol of the Czech state and national identity since the early middle ages, and has always been an obligatory figure in history education. The two Wenceslases, Myslbek's and Cerny's, create a dialogue between past mythology and contemporary reality, political decay, and the loss of a clear national and democratic direction after liberation from Soviet Union in 1989. In contradiction to one another, the irony and absurdity of Cerny's rider's position and activity raise questions about the"truth" and the making of national mythologies.
www.wikipedia.org:
David Černý (born December 15, 1967) is a Czech sculptor whose works can be seen in many locations in Prague. His works tend to be controversial.
Černý was born in Prague. He gained notoriety in 1991 by painting a Soviet tank pink, to serve as a war memorial in central Prague. As the Monument to Soviet tank crews was still a national cultural monument at that time, his act of civil disobedience was considered"hooliganism" and he was briefly arrested. Another of Černý's conspicuous contributions to Prague is"Tower Babies, " a series of cast figures of crawling infants attached to Žižkov Television Tower.
www.waymarking.com:
Statue of St. Wenceslas mounting a dead horse at the Lucerna arcade in Prague.
The statue by a controversial Czech sculptor David Cerny mirrors the famous statue of St. Wenceslas, patron saint of the Czech state, in Wenceslas Square. For the comical, but also ironical effect, St. Wenceslas is sitting on the belly of his dead horse suspended from the ceiling.
The statue was originally situated at the bottom end of the Wenceslas Square (whereas the original St. Wenceslas dominates the upper end of the square). Nowadays it is kept in the arcade of the Lucerna palace not far from the original site.
The artist made a humorous pact with Dagmar Havlova, the owner of Lucerna, that the sculpture shall not be removed until the constitutional monarchy is restored in the Czech Republic.