Tereza Trnková↓

About the work

Mysteriousness

Tereza Trnková‘s diploma project is an artistic expression of healing and protection of current countryside. In the surroundings of the forest in Dobřeň, where the artist comes from, she works with the local countryside, arranging sculptures around natural pools and at the source of the Polepka brook.

Tereza Trnková focuses on creation of objects and sculptures in which she seeks to activate their spiritual potential. In her previous works she pursued sacred activism and artistic treatment of energy radiators. From theoretical perspective, her artistic expression has evolved from sculptures with active impact on their surroundings to perception of space as well as to external inspiration and confrontation with herself. Trnková perceives the process of spiritual development as a quality that is inseparable from her lifestyle.

Two terms should be mentioned in connection with her work - lithopuncture and geomancy. Lithopuncture is a technique of “landscape healing” conceived by Marko Pogačnik, a contemporary Slovenian artist, who also coined its name. The work of Trnková has been significantly influenced by Pogačnik’s art. As for geomancy, it is an ancient way of perceiving nature, landscape and work within it. It is, for instance, safe to say that building of cities started in harmony with landscape systems. Inner beliefs and communication with the subtle aspects of nature are of crucial importance for Tereza Trnková.

Trnková’s diploma work itself consists of four tangible parts. Two small-sized sculptures situated beside the natural pols were intended as gifts to the creatures of water, known from fairy tales as water fairies. Through her activities, the artist wants to express her gratitude for water and for nature’s boundless tolerance of us, as well as of our attitude towards sacred principles. A related installation, the temple for water can be visited at the exhibition where the viewer also has a chance to take a taste of the water from the forest pool. The artist asked for the water for the exhibition and expressed her thanks for it. In her diploma project, Trnková presents the reverent perception of water as a living being as „beauty“ deserving of being celebrated. In her own words: „This is not just water“. In human mind, there is a very thin line between the realm of fairy tales and everyday reality. Trnková crosses that line, offering us a chance to experience the mystery of those parallel worlds through her work. A bridge spanning the forest stream and connecting its banks is the fourth part of Trnková’s diploma work. The sculpture embodies the ideas of support, love, and faith in the harmony of all elements of nature. The message it communicates is particularly urgent since a high-speed railway (a train track between Prague and Brno) is to be built through the artist’s native valley. Trnková’s reaction is not meant to be any petition or protest against the construction, only an attempt to express empathy for nature and the beings inhabiting it.

Changes and the processes taking place during work are a fascinating story described by the artist primarily as a development of the working methods where the ability to feel is the determining factor of communication.

The way our mood is affected by the experience of a landscape is crucial and this perhaps why the artist decided to stage the exhibition opening as a sacred celebration in which the viewers are invited to participate. Each visit to places in the countryside is an opportunity for mutual healing - because what is above is also below – and, given a chance, the forces promoting harmony are profound.

The sense of wonder characteristic of Trnková’s way of experiencing the magic of nature is shared by the artist with the people of her home village as well as the visitors to the exhibition at the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague. She shares her art with many on the same wavelength, with the people believing in the same spiritual energy that simply IS. To return to nature is vital and absolutely natural. Tereza Trnková‘s finds her inspiration in Slavic mythology perceived through her own roots. The Slavs did not separate nature into living and non-living, they worshipped mystical beings who protected and helped them. They worshipped the forces of nature, asked them for guidance and expressed gratitude for them in their prayers. There is nothing new about the spiritual approach to creation and it is increasingly clear it is becoming more than relevant.