Under the Surface by Jana Machatová and Peter Machata

Artist list

Peter Machata, Jana Machatova

Jana Machatová and Peter Machata have been working together for two decades in the communicative, mobile interface of designer jewelry, in its moving and energy- filled oscillations among designer, wearer and spectator and with an emphasis on time-space relations.  They work behind a single jewelry-making table in a shared living space, but on autonomous, centrifugal and centripetal tracks.  They are connected by the sense of the “rule of fastening.” For them, a piece of jewelry is articulated by the rhythm of a living body, phrased by grainy and spontaneous motions of human experience.   
/ Viere Kleinova


Jana Machatová uncovers her childhood on both a personal and societal level. The collection ”Pictures from a Family Album” reminds the viewer of idyllic memories one has from the childhood.  Memories of childhood are equally the core of her collections “Where Are You From” and “Home Sweet Home”. These are in contrast with the sentimentality and nostalgia of the previous works as they brutally decry the hypocrisy of the “normalization” period of then Czechoslovakia (when the communist regime tightened its grip on the country, after a short period of democratization in the late sixties). After joyful moments of childhood comes the disillusion of the totalitarian regime.  

Peter Machata combines the materials from past centuries with the latest. The signature element of his works is the imprint of a palm or finger. Through them, he tells stories, asks questions, goes back to the past or drafts the future. The titles of his collections such as “Mother and Son”, “Saint Relics” or “Stigmas” make the viewer think that Peter dwells on religious issues. Instead, he considers them to be the symbols deeply embedded in our psyche. He likewise, and with ease, uses the symbols of pop-culture. Then he shows them from different perspectives enabling the audience to reveal several options of interpretation or self-identification.


Opening:
Wednesday, 4 May 2022, at 5 pm.

Opening hours:
Tuesday – Saturday, 11 am–6 pm
Sunday, 11 am–4 pm