Jaroslava Severová (b. 1942) is a leading figure in the field of Czech graphics, although her body of work dating back to the 1960s encompasses a far broader scope that also includes painting, object art, the design of architectural elements and photography. Additionally, since the 1990s she has worked with computer graphics and digital printing. The exhibition at the gallery’s White Cube has been conceived as a “dialogue” between the artist’s early works from the GMU collections and her more recent creations.
In her art, Jaroslava Severová makes use of innovative techniques and conceptual approaches. Her reflections are often founded on physical, mathematical or geometric principles, which she renders experimentally. In her most recent work, she uses computers to express her thoughts about space, movement, time, light and the perception of reality. Using her own specific visual language, she encodes a record of reality into her art and invites the viewer to read this record. Most of her graphic works are made in larger cycles, in which she divides a primary visual symbol into smaller parts or uses it to cover the entire surface of the paper. Her works are lavishly conceived in terms of both the individual prints or the entire series and besides their aesthetic qualities she also places great emphasis on the choice of materials and printing technique.
Over the course of her career, JAROSLAVA SEVEROVÁ (b. 1942) has contributed to the evolution of computer graphics in the Czech Republic. A member of the Hollar Association of Czech Graphic Artists, she is the recipient of numerous prestigious awards, including the Vladimír Boudník Award for her unique and distinctive contribution to the development of contemporary Czech graphic arts (2005). Equally worth noting are her teaching activities at the Faculty of Architecture of Czech Technical University in Prague, the Faculty of Education at the University of Hradec Králové and as part of various other professional endeavours. Her use of digital technologies as a tool for deeper artistic reflection has influenced younger artists who in their work combine traditional techniques with the digital world. It is important for Severová that they not forget about philosophical and conceptual questions and that they understand digital media as a means of distinctive and original artistic creation.
The exhibition was supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic and the Statutory City of Hradec Králové.
