The Large exhibition The Glory of The Baroque In Bohemia will be held in Dublin's Goethe Institute from 6th December 2001. It will present art and culture from the 17th and 18th centuries in their diversity of expression, their integration into everyday, festive and religious life of society at that time and the attitude ti its defining ideals. The scope of the exhibition, will surpass all exhibitions of the Czech Baroque held to date.
This collection of photographs, capturing the beauty of Czech Baroque architecture, is published in order to bring visitor's attention to this planned extensive exhibition. The collection of photographs by Vladimir Uher is divided into three parts. The first (1-17) shows some of the most famous buildings by celebrated architects. The second part (18-33) brings together various ways in which the same or similar architectural themes were treated in the works of the greatest geniuses of the Czech Baroque, Jan Blazej Santini-Aichel and Kilian Ignac Dienzenhofer. The last part of the collection (34-45) presents the beauty ot the architectural form and the artistic details of the Czech Baroque.
In Bohemia's thousand year old architectural history, the Baroque indeed represents the culminating epoch. At that time the country saw the birth of a number of work reflecting radical and audacious artistic conception and exceptionally high quality craftsmanship. Buildings of the high and late Baroque, in particular, are extremely complex from the point of view of their composition, with ornate forms creating what are truly impressive sights. To photograph buildings of this kind requires both an ability for analytical awareness and the free sensitivity of the enchanted observer. Vladimir Uher has been photographing Czech Baroque for over fifty years. The collection is thus also a memento of the recent jubilee celebrate by this great master of contemporary Czech photography.
Doc. PhDr. Mojmir Horyna, 12/2000
Organized by the Czech Embassy in Dublin in cooperation with the Goethe Institute, Merrion Sq., Dublin 2.