Variace (Variation) 1995

Curator: Before us is Dalibor Smutny's "Variace," or "Variation," a print made in 1995, utilizing the etching technique. Editor: It has a shadowy sort of beauty, doesn't it? Like looking at the blueprints of a gothic cathedral after a fire. You can just make out the chevron pattern beneath layers of ash. Curator: Yes, it's intriguing how Smutny overlays these strong geometric lines with a somewhat melancholic atmosphere. Abstraction here serves a powerful emotive function. What does this piece suggest about the context of Czech graphic art in the nineties? The themes are seemingly divergent - there is an apparent return to structure, perhaps order even, yet, this order is obfuscated by the medium and a certain darkness of mood. Editor: Right? The texture is everything. Look at how the lines are almost consumed by the darkness, but stubbornly, beautifully, fight to remain visible. This isn't just a cold, calculated exercise in geometry. There's an aching there, something almost human. I feel Smutny took the objective principles of art, mathematics and technical craft, and sought to smudge them with his life. It gives the whole piece a lovely tension. What’s your view? Curator: The artist himself was dedicated to geometric abstraction and constructivist principles for many years, though his exploration of etching softened the sometimes severe quality of constructivist art and graphic design. Consider also how Smutny's work reflects broader artistic dialogues following the end of Soviet influence in Czech culture. Many artists walked a tightrope between formalism and raw emotion. It feels as if he may have been consciously making use of both to push boundaries, whilst holding onto some core beliefs. Editor: Boundaries held only tentatively, if you ask me! Anyway, it’s a beautiful conversation Smutny sets up. This dance of light and shadow, clarity and ambiguity… Makes you wonder what’s being varied here. Is it the light? Is it the geometry? Is it maybe a past that keeps pressing through? Curator: I agree. In the end, perhaps what’s being varied is simply our perception of reality, both the orderly aspects and the more difficult ones. Editor: Precisely, I think the ghost of beauty lingers for all to see.