Made in Prague Festival turns 30 with a nod to the 1990s Czech art scene

The Czech Centre is staging the 30^th edition of its Made in Prague Festival this autumn, presenting 30 events across London, Birmingham and Oxford. The anniversary programme spans film, literature, visual art, design, music, dance and the social sciences, with a particular emphasis on the 1990s, a decade of political and social transformation in the Czech Republic and of the artistic activity that followed it.

The festival opens on 11^th September with two exhibitions presented as part of the London Design Festival. At the Vitrínka Gallery, David Černý: The Glorious 90s in Prague brings together a selection of works by the Czech visual artist, who specialises in large-scale sculptures that are seen all over the capital city. Several of Černý’s best-known pieces have been recreated in 3D by Prusa Research (one of the Czech Republic’s largest 3D-printer manufacturers). A photographic display of his large-scale works in Prague also accompanies the show.

Nearby, the Bouda Gallery hosts Landscape, an exhibition of contemporary Czech design by students of the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague, supervised by the product designer and curator Milan Pekař. The festival is also supporting the participation of the Czech multimedia artist Matyáš Chochola at Frieze Sculpture, and in Birmingham it forms part of a new project by the Czech-British artist Tereza Bušková, whose work addresses female representation in art.

Film forms a substantial part of the programme. The Garden Cinema will host a retrospective of the Czechoslovak New Wave of the 1960s, including František Vláčil’s historical epic Marketa Lazarová and Věra Chytilová’s Daisies. The season concludes with the UK premiere of the 4K restoration of Jaromil Jireš’s Valerie and Her Week of Wonders at BFI Southbank. Regent Street Cinema and The Garden Cinema will screen most of the new releases, among them Tereza Nvotová’s psychological drama Father and Miro Remo’s documentary Better Go Mad in the Wild, which won the Crystal Globe at the 59^th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.

For music, there’s an opening concert by the Bohemian Symphony Orchestra in London, performing Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons at St George’s Church in Mayfair as part of a UK tour with stops from Eastbourne to Edinburgh. The programme also includes works by Dvořák, Mozart and Bach, with the young Czech soloist Matteo Hager. The Martinů Quartet returns to mark its 50^th anniversary with performances from Leamington Spa to Edinburgh, while the singer-songwriter and pianist Lenny gives a concert and album launch at Notting Hill Arts Club.

The choreographer and performer Miřenka Čechová (winner of the Herald Angel Award at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe) brings Ballerinas to the Coronet Theatre. The piece examines mental health and the pressures faced by young ballet dancers in a rigid educational system..

In literature, the writer Viktorie Hanišová introduces her novel The Mushroom Gatherer to audiences in Oxford and London. Further events are dedicated to the legacy of Václav Havel, the dissident and later president, on what would have been his 90^th birthday.

The three-month event promises to showcase the “extraordinary creative energy of the 1990s” via an exciting, eclectic programme that features Czech cultural icons and new voices. Tickets are on sale now.

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The 30th Made in Prague Festival takes place from 11^th September until 29^th November at the Czech Centre, 30 Kensington Palace Gardens, London W8 4QY. For further information or to book tickets, visit here.