Somewhere Something

Abstract

The article by Pavlína Morganová, Somewhere Something (Někde něco) is dedicated to one, yet very impressive and momentous exhibition at the Galerie Václava Špály in Prague. Held in 1969, at a special moment in time - soon after the Prague Spring, it was the last experimental exhibition associated with conceptual art, new realism and arte povera, as well as one of the most radical shows of the 1960s. It was curated by Jiří Padrta and featured the work of four very different but equally outstanding artists - two married couples: Jiří Kolář, Běla Kolářová, Zorka Ságlová and Jan Ságl. The exhibition is compared to an earlier event “When attitudes become form” curated by Harold Szeemann. “Někde něco” was an exemplification of liberal tendencies in Czechoslovakia's culture around 1968 and one of their last manifestos in politics and culture after the military intervention by the Warsaw Pact in 1968. The article offers a thorough reconstruction of the exhibition as a visual proof of radical aesthetics movements and as an expression of Czechoslovakia's political emancipation from Soviet domination and aesthetic patterns. Notwithstanding its uniqueness, for a long time “Somewhere Something” was virtually forgotten. From today's perspective, it is unquestionably one of the most radical exhibitions of the sixties, both in form and content, while simultaneously symbolising the tragic climax of a dramatic period for Czechoslovakia.