František Kupka & Museum Kampa: Abstraction & Atonality

“The creative ability of an artist is manifested only if he succeeds in transforming the natural phenomena into ‘another reality.’ This part of the creative process as an independent element, if conscious and developed, hints at the possibility of creating a painting.” ~ František Kupka.

I don’t know how many people are actually creating now. The word create comes from late Middle English, in the sense “form out of nothing”; from Latin creat- ‘produced,’ from the verb creare. Some are. Most are just copying what has been done before. When did we stopping looking at stars? There are galaxies within that don’t have an entry fee. Go!

I didn’t plan on attending the Kampa Museum but was side-tracked while walking. I stayed there for quite a bit as I was mesmerized by some of the abstract work outside. Not many contemporary abstract works leave an impression on me. Abstract has come to mean, at least in my humble opinion, whatever anyone wants it to mean. I don’t know where this notion began that abstract art is without meaning or without relation to experiences here and now but this museum was certainly refreshing. Although each individual viewer brings his or her own perception and experiences to the art or sculpture, I do think without the artist’s vision and intention the works would feel hollow. These works will stay with my for a long time.

There are wonderful, breathtaking works inside by František Kupka but I don’t have photos of that. Kupka was “an artist of his time but one difficult to categorise, in the French capital Kupka became acquainted with the artistic movements that arose during the first half of the 20th century. He established links with them but still maintained his own personal direction and was consequently described by the painter and theoretician Félix Del Marle as “rebellious, insubordinate and one who pursued his own path”. Kupka was never comfortable with the limits imposed by a particular movement, and as a result his painting does not fit within the traditional account of the rise of the early avant-garde movements. Instead, it invites the viewer to adopt new perspectives on the birth and evolution of modern art.”

Here are some photos around the outside part of the Kampa Museum.

Saw this lady feeding pigeons in front of the museum. Not sure what caught my eye first: her random act to stop walking and start feeding these pigeons or the wall in the background where the chipped space reminded me of the map of United States.

“Even if I never achieve great success in life, I am happy to think that this will come about after my death. My whole self is not just my body, and by then I will be sailing far away, in the realm of space.” ~  František Kupka

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