Meeting Point
Meeting PointVeronika Čechmánkovámusic: Milan Mazúr (song Rizaia)
We are witness to a random encounter between three statuette-women. It's apparent they know each other, although they don't seem to be close friends. You could say they're acquaintances. The snippet of their conversation, a mixture of formalities and phrases, is filled with meaning telling of ourselves. The deformation of their shape and the reduction of elementary spatial composition makes us view them through a wholly different lens than the one we are used to with prehistoric statuettes. They point at human traits which remain unchanged even in the face of all current culture. They are the true bearers of the icons of today.
While clarifying this term, we move from semiotician Charles Sander Peirce's first usage and Roland Barthes' Mythologies all the way to an interpretation that sees icon in the context of contemporary culture as something unreachable, metaphysically distant - an ideal, which we are destined to forever strive for, gasping for air and without any hope of success. It is sort of a today's need of a religious experience that makes us turn to things we see in commercials and then buy with glaring eyes in exchange for time, which we won't ever get back.Shopping we love. Looking at products, choosing, and considering their purchase is one of the most splendid forms of guilty pleasure the human species has to offer. One might think this phenomena is mainly connected to a society that was formed by the luxuries of recent centuries. Is it truly so? Let's take a step forward and peek into the talking women's transparent shopping bags. References start to layer and pieces of context pile on top of each other. The story arc sends us back to the present from the past, arching from every existing civilization to the one final arch, which supports the building of our favourite mall.
Veronika Čechmánková's work focuses primarily on the changing of symbols and traditions in time, their transformation and possible meanings in the present. She takes visual and cultural pieces of history and examines their validity and possibilities in the context of today. The crux of her work is layering and mixing and matching of references, which together form a wholly new outlook on deeply rooted archetypes and symbols, such as scythe, bread or neolithic statuettes. She studies at the Studio of Photography and New Media at FAMU and her art has been shown in galleries such as FUTURA in Prague and Studio Vortex in Arles or at the BF Artist Film Festival in London. This year she reached the finals in the Jiné vize (Other visions) competition at the PAF festival in Olomouc. Her work was published in the book FRESH EYES this year.
Curator: Michal Jalůvka, Zai XuProduction: Sarah Adnanová PR: David LauferCorrection: David LauferArchitect: Michal Jalůvka, Zai XuWe thank Sára Prostějovská, Anna Kolářová, Adam Soukupovič, Ezra Šimek, Gabriela Benish-Kalna, Natálie Ševčíková, Štěpánka Šimlová, Jonáš Strouhal and Prague 8 City District for supporting this show.
Meeting Point （相遇点）
维罗妮卡·切奇曼科娃（Veronika Čechmánková）
音乐：米兰·马祖尔（Rizaia演唱）
我们目睹了三个小女人塑像之间的随机相遇。显然他们彼此了解，尽管他们似乎不是亲密的朋友。您可以说他们是熟人。他们谈话的片段是形式和短语的混合，充满了自我的意义。它们形状的变化和基本空间构成的减少，使我们可以用一种与观察过去史前小雕像完全不同的视角。他们指出，即使面对当前的所有文化，人类的特质也保持不变。他们是当今偶像的真正承载者。
在澄清这个术语的同时，我们从符号学家查尔斯·桑德·皮尔斯的首次用法和罗兰·巴特斯的《神话》一直发展到一种解释，该解释将当代文化背景下的图标（目标）视为一种遥不可及，形而上有距离的--一种理想，我们注定要永远争取，气喘吁吁，而没有成功的希望。这是当今对宗教经验的需求，使得我们转向商业广告中看到的事物，然后瞪大眼睛购买，以换取时间，这是我们永远都不会回来的。
我们热爱购物。查看产品、进行选择并考虑购买，是人类所提供最出色的有罪快乐的形式之一。有人可能会认为这种现象主要与最近几个世纪的奢侈品形成的社会有关。真的吗？让我们向前迈进，窥视那些说话的女士透明购物袋。参考从开始到各层次以及彼此重叠的上下文片段。故事的弧度使我们从过去回到了现在，从每个存在的文明到支持着我们最喜欢的购物中心建筑的最后一个拱门。
维罗妮卡·切奇曼科娃（Veronika Čechmánková）的作品主要着眼于符号（象征）和传统在时间上的变化，它们的转换以及目前的可能含义。她采用可见的历史文化片段，并在今天的背景下考察它们的有效性和可能性。她的作品着重对于参照物进行分层、混合、匹配，这些参照物共同构成了对根深蒂固的原型和符号的全新呈现，例如大镰刀，面包或新石器时代的小雕像。
她曾在布拉格电影学院的摄影工作室和新媒体学院学习，她的作品曾在布拉格的FUTURA画廊和阿尔勒（法国）的Vortex工作室或伦敦的BF艺术家电影节展出。今年，她在奥洛穆茨（Olomouc）的电影动画与当代艺术节（PAF）上参加了其他单元的比赛，进入决赛。她的作品发表在今年的《FRESH EYES》一书中。
策展人：米哈尔·贾卢夫卡（MichalJalůvka）、徐在（Zai Xu）
制作：莎拉·阿德纳诺娃（Sarah Adnanová）
公关：大卫·劳弗（David Laufer）
校对：大卫·劳弗（David Laufer）
建筑师：Michal Jalůvka，Zai Xu
感谢Sára Prostějovská，Anna Kolářová，Adam Soukupovič，Ezra Šimek，Gabriela Benish-Kalna，Natálie Ševčíková，Štěpánka Šimlová，Jonáš Strouhal和布拉格八区政府的支持