Ethical, cultural and material aspects of mobility for the contemporary Czech avant-garde art through the Iron Curtain during the late socialism
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| Year of publication | 2025 |
| Type | Requested lectures |
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| Description | The mobility of Czech avant-garde art under late socialism was strictly regulated, yet the late 1960s saw the rise of private collections of nonconformist art. Built on personal ties rather than institutional support, these collections became symbolic "inner spaces of freedom." International transfers behind the Iron Curtain, however, were tightly controlled by ArtCentrum, the state enterprise managing Czech art sales in the West. Direct artistic ties abroad, mainly to German- and Italian-speaking regions, were rare and often relied on émigré networks. Even these connections usually required state approval, limiting independent artistic exchange. What were the ethical and material aspects of this sporadic cultural mobility of contemporary Czech avant-garde art to the hands of collectors and gallerists situated in the West? |