Monika Žáková

Monika Žáková (1987) is a leading representative of the contemporary art scene, claiming the legacy of the geometric abstraction of the 1960s, and winner of the third prize of the Critics’ Award for Young Painting (2014). She came to the attention of collectors and art theorists with her diploma thesis entitled Linea Alba, which in 2012 concluded her studies at Jiří Sopko’s Painting Studio at the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague and opened her artistic career, which is directed from symbol to material. She gradually abandoned the tools of painting and adopted working methods that are more typical of sculptural or architectural work. She uses light, space, composition, movement, as well as a variety of materials such as fabrics, metals, paper and plaster, which are both the basic technology and content of her work. Her works are characterised by an almost haptic sensitivity to the chosen material and its physicality, which Žáková allows to speak through the process of mutual collaboration. This creates a unique geographical structure, or in the case of papers and fabrics, a mind map, capturing the process of reciprocal interaction between the artist and the selected material. Her works have been presented at many solo and collective exhibitions. They have been displayed in many European capitals and Japan, for example, and have become part of important collections there.