Visual Communication Blog: Entry 1

 Visual culture is a highly versatile field of study that covers a wide range of contemporary objects, expressed through almost any medium with a primarily visual component. This can be seen in traditional art forms, such as my own sculptural work “Ježek Venku z Klece (2018)”. Since I’m currently living in the Czech Republic, I chose to connect my work with the nation's history through use of thematic visual devices.

 My initial concept for this sculpture was based on the Czech flag because it consists of three basic colours (blue, white, red) in simple geometric proportions (2:3:3). For the physical form of my sculpture I wanted it to resemble the angular beams of anti-tank fortifications, referred to as ‘Czech Hedgehogs’, based on their origins in Czechoslovakia during World War 2. The characteristic three-armed cross of this static obstacle forms the axes of an octahedron, so I applied the current Czech flag’s colour scheme to each of my three wooden sticks.

 To complete my sculpture, I decided to balance the hedgehog’s shape as a symbol of conflict (“Defence at all costs”), with a light-hearted and entertaining game of ancient origins, known as ’Knucklebones (or Jacks)’. Instead of animal bones, the modern game uses five die-sized metal cubes, with 2 spikes and 4 balls on each end, so I took similarly shaped objects (Styrofoam balls and screws) and attached them onto both ends of each wooden stick. Finally, I painted the objects to match their axes, so they would accurately replicate the colours and proportions of the Czech flag.

 In the context of global visual culture, this work reflects Czech attitudes towards the Munich Agreement of 1938, seen as a Western betrayal (“zrada Západu”) since it provided “cession to Germany of the Sudeten German territory” of Czechoslovakia. This region contained the Czechoslovak border fortifications and were their most important means of providing a viable defence against German invasion. Therefore, when Germany invaded and occupied their country one year later, the feelings of abandonment and dishonour were a harsh strike to the proud nation. This sentiment can be identified in the work, which presents a single miniature hedgehog that is incapable of performing the function it was originally designed for, and has instead become the plaything of forces larger than itself.