David Černý – original and controversial works of art guaranteed
The luxurious, oversized sculptures located in public places traditionally draw the most attention. There are quite a few in Prague alone, as well as several installations abroad.
Kafka’s head and big-eyed Trifot
The most recently installation in downtown Prague is the head of Franz Kafka, located at the entrance to the Quadrio shopping centre. This luxurious sculpture weighs 39 tonnes, is 11 metres high and consists of 42 layers moved around by 42 synchronised motors. These 42 layers rotate around a central axis, changing the shape of the world famous writer’s face.
In October 2016, the Trifot sculpture was unveiled near the Nové Butovice metro station in front of the Czech Photo Centre. The luxurious structure, which is 12 metres high, gazes down on passing pedestrians through its massive eyeballs, and displays them on six screens positioned right next to it. The work is a reference to Orwell’s famous novel 1984 and Big Brother.
Babies on the Žižkov TV tower
Probably the most famous work by David Černý currently on display in Prague are the Babies. These are black laminated statutes of babies crawling up and down the Žižkov TV tower. Originally, they were supposed to be installed temporarily on the occasion of the Prague European City of Culture 2000 project, but in 2001 they were attached permanently due to their immense success. You can see the Babies up close in a luxurious bronze version at Prague’s Kampa Park.
Horse in Lucerna Passage
In addition to its exceptional interior, Palace Lucerna also boasts a statue that is scoped out by hundreds of Czech and foreign tourist cameras every day. In front of the stairs to the upper floors of Lucerna Passage, lift your gaze upward. You will see the Horse statue, which depicts St. Wenceslas sitting on the belly of his dead horse. This luxury statue was created in 1999.
Equally famous were Černý’s Pink Tank in Smíchov, the hanging man in the image of Sigmund Freud in Husova Street in Prague, the Trabant on legs on Wenceslas Square in 1990 and many more.
Push-up Bus and Entropa
The London Booster, an English double-decker bus in the form of an athlete, and Entropa, in which David Černý assigned a specific stereotype to each country, made headlines in the foreign media.
One thing is certain every time a new David Černý work is to be unveiled: it will once again be an original and non-conformist work of art.
