Review - Photography's connection to time has always been one of its key values. Either when it is documenting one's memories or when it overlaps with some kind of collective memory.
The nature of the medium itself encourages projects that are based on its potent ability to witness and revive the captured moment.
Two such ways, with which photography can filter the course of time, are presented by two independent photographic exhibitions in Prague's Mánes. The first one does so rigidly and slavishly, the latter kind of spontaneously, and therefore stylishly.
One Day of the Czech Republic doesn't bring anything new to the home scene and, needless to say, not even to the world stage. It only revives the project of Adolf Zika from 1999.
Yet again, its instigator was among the advisors of the happening, which assigned 135 Czech photographers to take a snapshot of the Czech Republic within a 24-hour period, between noon of October 28th and the noon of the following day.
The concept is surely attractive for the participating photographers, supposing they take it as a summer camp game: head out into the game field and collect as many streamers as possible.
However, it starts to loose its appeal when the selection of roughly three hundred snapshots captured on the day of the Declaration of the state of Czechoslovakia is analyzed and scrutinized: What is the key message of that incompatible sum of particulars? What does it say? About what? And to whom?
Common destinies
What message is hidden in photographs submitted by operators from Brno cinema Lucerna, which share the same space with portraits of Charta 77 signatories, which are next to the views from a cottage settlement, which are next to a still life of an abandoned basketball net in an undulated landscape, which is next to a black-and-white reportage of a care home, which you'll find next to Holomíček´s self-portrait, which in turn is placed next to photos of president Klaus holding his usual state duties on this day?
What has all this in common? Is it more than just some effort to amaze using a bizarre synchronism of events? We can be a president or a mother on maternity leave, but our parallel destinies are connected by only two factors, which we we're unable to choose and which are celebrated by the exhibition: nationality and time.
And if that's it, isn't it not enough? It is.
All the events, that could have been elaborated, explained in their context and related, become empty, meaningless formulas of resigned efforts of humankind on our small native heath.
What's more is that most authors submitted standard pictures burdened with their personal compositional and thematic signatures. Holomíček submitted his "holomíčekism", Cudlín his "cudlínism" and Alena Dvořáková with Viktor Fišer decided to be safe and used a part of the collection The Greatest Czech, which they had already sent to Czech Press Photo.
Thirty years on
The result resembles a self-purposed stroboscope, that somebody forgot to switch off on time and it ruined everybody's eyes in the mean time. What would look like motion in some normal light, was broken down into pieces, which are so far from each other now, that you are not able to connect them into some logical sequence any more.
And the doubt about whether the link will arise by itself during the planned re-run of the exhibition One Day of the Czech Republic in 2038, is relatively correct. It is more likely, that after 30 years, we will all have a good laugh, what ridiculous rags we used to wear at the time.
In this regard, One Day of the Czech Republic creates a false memory, which should somehow be common to all of us, but in fact, it doesn't belong to anybody and it is difficult to relate to it.
The second exhibition in Mánes called The Non-Important has a soothing effect, being right next to a discotheque. It gathers works by young photographers, fresh graduates or at the time students of Photographic Studio of VŠUP (Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design).
Tamed youngsters feign placidity
Only a staircase separates the crazy delirium of One Day from a show with strict borders, under tight reins of curator Ivan Pinkava. Although one would expect quite the opposite from a presentation of young photographers.
The Non-Important builds upon orderly, prosaic and calm photographs. Black-and-white photographs prevail; when it comes to color, it still gives off a monochromatic impression. Even when they show a fake war, as it is in the case of the trio Patrik Borecký, Štěpán Pech and Lukáš Prokůpek, it is done delicately, there is no invasion into the space of the gallery.
The Non-Important is an exhibition gripping the bit between its teeth and the coachman is yelling: Wo! All of the authors here and that's a fact - are tamed so that in this slow motion, something that is certainly more permanent (although definitely not eternal) would arise.
Something, that will last more than a day: even if it was the most important bank holiday.
Jeden den České republiky, Mánes Exhibition Hall, Praha. The exhibition lasts through 29 March. - The Non-Important. Curators - Ivan Pinkava, Lucie Mlynářová, Michal Hladík.
