Eva Eisler and Jan Šépka - On Venuses and Villas
Architect Jan Šépka and artist Eva Eisler, professors at the Czech Technical University in Prague, are meeting at an exhibition in the Winternitz Villa. Jan Šépka is exhibiting three models of his private villas, while Eva Eisler showcases Venuses, sculptures of female torsos made from glass. Together, they invite contemplation on the beauty of a private home. In their presentation, it is not about comfort and ostentatious luxury, but rather a world that elevates its inhabitants and gives their lives an artistic dimension. This is what architect Adolf Loos, the creator of the Winternitz Villa, aimed for, providing this exhibition with the best possible backdrop. The exhibition entitled "On Venuses and Villas" can be visited from June 27 to August 30, 2020.
"For your apartment, you are always right," wrote Adolf Loos, the architect of the Winternitz Villa, in his magazine To druhé (1903). Those with taste, sensitivity, and education can create their own uplifting world at home. Living in a beautiful house is an art. The exhibition by architect Jan Šépka and versatile artist Eva Eisler reflects on the beauty of a private villa. Here we find models of three Šépka villas, complemented by sculptures of Venuses. As the goddess of beauty for these private universes.
The arch of Jan Šépka's house is located just a few minutes' walk from the Winternitz Villa. It also offers its owners an uplifting world. The individual rooms of the concrete villa are crowned with arches. It is a favorable static solution, but also a contemporary version of castle nobility. Instead of ornamentation, there is a view from a large window. Another villa is named Prolínání. The amoeba-like structure truly intertwines with the garden, creating an ecosystem on the border of nature and architecture. The wavy ceilings resemble clouds and are supported by pieces of granite like rocks. The third House in the Orchard is much humbler, yet here too, the requirements of the investor and the architect's distinctive interpretation have come together – resulting in a house that resembles a giant mushroom. The wishes of the investors lead architecture down new paths – this is also the significance of a private villa.
"Things, objects, spaces, houses, we perceive in the context of the environment into which we place them. I chose glass objects for this exhibition for the reason that exceptional houses arise from the collaboration and resonance of the architect and the client - the future owner, who then breathes life into the house. The glass objects are, in this case, symbols of a patroness of timeless values, of Jan Šépka's houses." This is what Eva Eisler says about the exhibition, which she surrounded with her Venuses made of glass. The female archetype has fascinated her for a long time; earlier, she created abstract Venuses from wood and stone. Her sculptures embody something from the Paleolithic, something from organic abstraction, as well as the craftsmanship of hand-processed glass.
Eva Eisler is an internationally recognized multi-disciplinary artist and designer and is considered one of the leading creative personalities working in the fields of fine art, artistic jewelry, furniture, interior accessories, interior and exhibition design, as well as in curatorial and educational activities. Since 1987, she has taught at higher education institutions such as New York University, Parsons School of Design, and is currently the head of the K.O.V. studio at the Czech Technical University in Prague. Her work is represented in the permanent collections of international museums and galleries such as the Brooklyn Museum of Art, Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Art and Design in New York, Smithsonian Institution – Renwick Gallery in Washington, Museum of Fine Arts – in Montreal, in Boston, in Houston, Pinakothek der Moderne in Munich, UPM Museum in Prague, and others.
Jan Šépka, educator and head of the Architecture Studio I at UMPRUM, is a significant contemporary architect who has participated in a number of award-winning projects both domestically and abroad. Among the most well-known are modifications of Horní náměstí in Olomouc, modifications of Jiřské náměstí at Prague Castle, the Archdiocesan Museum in Olomouc, a villa in Beroun, Villa Hermína, modifications of the castle design in Litomyšl, the design of the National Library in Prague, Room in the Landscape in Modrava, House in the Orchard, or the installation Perception in České Budějovice. In 1994, he co-founded the association Nová česká práce with Michal Kuzemenský, from 1998 to 2009, he was a partner in the studio HŠH architekti, s.r.o., and since 2009 he has owned his own design office Šépka architekti. From 2004 to 2014, he served as a lecturer at the Faculty of Architecture of the Czech Technical University in Prague. From 2014 to 2016, he was the head of the Project and Competition Office at IPR in Prague. In 2006, he was the editor of the yearbook Česká architektura and in 2015 published the book "How to Make a City." In 2019, the first publication focusing monographically on the work of architect Jan Šépka entitled Inspiration was published.
"For your apartment, you are always right," wrote Adolf Loos, the architect of the Winternitz Villa, in his magazine To druhé (1903). Those with taste, sensitivity, and education can create their own uplifting world at home. Living in a beautiful house is an art. The exhibition by architect Jan Šépka and versatile artist Eva Eisler reflects on the beauty of a private villa. Here we find models of three Šépka villas, complemented by sculptures of Venuses. As the goddess of beauty for these private universes.
The arch of Jan Šépka's house is located just a few minutes' walk from the Winternitz Villa. It also offers its owners an uplifting world. The individual rooms of the concrete villa are crowned with arches. It is a favorable static solution, but also a contemporary version of castle nobility. Instead of ornamentation, there is a view from a large window. Another villa is named Prolínání. The amoeba-like structure truly intertwines with the garden, creating an ecosystem on the border of nature and architecture. The wavy ceilings resemble clouds and are supported by pieces of granite like rocks. The third House in the Orchard is much humbler, yet here too, the requirements of the investor and the architect's distinctive interpretation have come together – resulting in a house that resembles a giant mushroom. The wishes of the investors lead architecture down new paths – this is also the significance of a private villa.
"Things, objects, spaces, houses, we perceive in the context of the environment into which we place them. I chose glass objects for this exhibition for the reason that exceptional houses arise from the collaboration and resonance of the architect and the client - the future owner, who then breathes life into the house. The glass objects are, in this case, symbols of a patroness of timeless values, of Jan Šépka's houses." This is what Eva Eisler says about the exhibition, which she surrounded with her Venuses made of glass. The female archetype has fascinated her for a long time; earlier, she created abstract Venuses from wood and stone. Her sculptures embody something from the Paleolithic, something from organic abstraction, as well as the craftsmanship of hand-processed glass.
Eva Eisler is an internationally recognized multi-disciplinary artist and designer and is considered one of the leading creative personalities working in the fields of fine art, artistic jewelry, furniture, interior accessories, interior and exhibition design, as well as in curatorial and educational activities. Since 1987, she has taught at higher education institutions such as New York University, Parsons School of Design, and is currently the head of the K.O.V. studio at the Czech Technical University in Prague. Her work is represented in the permanent collections of international museums and galleries such as the Brooklyn Museum of Art, Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Art and Design in New York, Smithsonian Institution – Renwick Gallery in Washington, Museum of Fine Arts – in Montreal, in Boston, in Houston, Pinakothek der Moderne in Munich, UPM Museum in Prague, and others.
Jan Šépka, educator and head of the Architecture Studio I at UMPRUM, is a significant contemporary architect who has participated in a number of award-winning projects both domestically and abroad. Among the most well-known are modifications of Horní náměstí in Olomouc, modifications of Jiřské náměstí at Prague Castle, the Archdiocesan Museum in Olomouc, a villa in Beroun, Villa Hermína, modifications of the castle design in Litomyšl, the design of the National Library in Prague, Room in the Landscape in Modrava, House in the Orchard, or the installation Perception in České Budějovice. In 1994, he co-founded the association Nová česká práce with Michal Kuzemenský, from 1998 to 2009, he was a partner in the studio HŠH architekti, s.r.o., and since 2009 he has owned his own design office Šépka architekti. From 2004 to 2014, he served as a lecturer at the Faculty of Architecture of the Czech Technical University in Prague. From 2014 to 2016, he was the head of the Project and Competition Office at IPR in Prague. In 2006, he was the editor of the yearbook Česká architektura and in 2015 published the book "How to Make a City." In 2019, the first publication focusing monographically on the work of architect Jan Šépka entitled Inspiration was published.
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