The Gallery of Modern Art in H. Králové will renew its permanent exhibition and open three exhibitions

Hradec Králové – The Gallery of Modern Art (GMU) in Hradec Králové will change the permanent exhibition of Czech Art of the 20th century and its categories by opening three exhibitions. The opening will take place on June 25. In the exhibition space Na bidýlku II, multimedia artist Polina Davydenko will present the exhibition Salty Wounds, Stony Shells, Imprinted Territory, while the exhibition space Za zdí will host the first posthumous exhibition of Czech conceptual artist Karel Miler, and the exhibition area Na zdi will belong to members of the Circle of Visual Artists. This was reported by representatives of GMU to ČTK.

GMU changes three sections in the permanent exhibition three times a year, namely Na bidýlku II, Za zdí, and Na zdi. The permanent exhibition was opened in February and will last until January 20, 2030. Through changing exhibitions that are part of the permanent exhibition, GMU aims to maintain its appeal for regular visitors. "The exhibitions will be on display until October 11," said the spokesperson of GMU Hradec Králové, Pavla Rousková.

Polina Davydenko connects photography, video, and installation in her work. "Her work is significantly influenced by her experience from Ukraine, especially the Donetsk region, where she is from. It reflects themes related to mining, migration, war, and the transformation of everyday life," Rousková stated.

Karel Miler, who lived from 1940 to 2025, was a Czech art historian, visual artist, author of visual poetry, and a representative of conceptual and action art. Together with Jan Mlčoch and Petr Štembera, he was part of the so-called Prague Trio, a loose group of authors associated with Czech action art, performance, and body art of the 1970s. His work is associated with the unofficial art scene during the normalization period, and although he ended his action art in the late 1970s, he is regarded as an important figure in Czech conceptual art, according to GMU representatives.

The exhibition of the Circle of Visual Artists in the section Na zdi will remind visitors of the connection of some authors to Eastern Bohemia and continues GMU's long-standing interest in the work of artists linked to the region. Works by Minka Podhajská, Julie Winterová-Mezerová, Anna Macková, and other authors will be displayed. The Circle of Visual Artists became the first Czech women's artistic association in 1920, uniting painters, sculptors, graphic artists, and authors of applied arts. It provided a professional background for women entering the public art sphere, the gallery informed.

Na bidýlku II is a small gallery where GMU presents the work of the youngest generation of authors, current students or graduates of art schools. Za zdí is an exhibition space dedicated to artists who worked outside the official structures of cultural policy between 1948 and 1989, in the underground or in the overlooked gray zone by institutions. Na zdi is an exhibition area dedicated to styles, themes, groups, female and male artists who remained outside the mainstream narrative of modern art.