Lot 193

Stanislav Libenský (1921-2002) a Jaroslava Brychtová (1924-2020) LIGHT GLASS OBJECT

Exceptional glass monumental sculptures were part of the interior of the main hall of the Czechoslovak Embassy in Stockholm, built by the renowned architect Jan Bočan between 1969-1972. The Libenský-Brychtová duo is one of the most sought-after artists on the world market. Libenský and Brychtová adapted the technology of fused glass to large-scale architectural projects. These can still be described as unique and world-wide. Stanislav Libenský and his wife, Jaroslava Brychtová, created sculptures and stained glass from glass fused in a mould. They were also involved in chamber works. However, their work is dominated by monumental creations - walls, stained glass (for example, the window to St. Wenceslas Chapel in St. Vitus Cathedral), geometrically stylized figural motifs. From the second half of the 1960s, they applied abstract geometric form in works with a symbolic message. At that time, among others, crystal sculptures, spheres in a cube and cubes in a sphere were created, in which the artists manipulated light effects. The duo made their mark on the public consciousness primarily with fused glass sculptures at the World Expo 58 in Brussels, where they won the Grand Prix for an object with colored zoomorphic stones, and their exhibits at the 1967 Montreal World's Fair also attracted admiration. At Expo 70 in Osaka, they presented their well-known work River of Life. As a professor at the University of Applied Arts between 1963 and 1987, Stanislav Libenský educated two generations of professional and inventive Czech artists. He also worked at several universities and summer schools in the USA. As an educator and artist, he won many awards, was awarded honorary foreign doctorates, frequently spoke at world congresses, lectured at glass conferences, served on various foreign juries and participated in numerous symposia. Together with Jaroslava Brychtová, he is represented in many galleries and museums both in the Czech Republic and abroad. The offered work represents a unique object of collaboration between these two artists. The work consists of a white metal construction with backlighting of a total of three dynamic glass sculptures mounted side by side. One of the three glass pieces with visual differences was finished by glassmakers Johan Pertl and Ivan Pokorny in 2024 after consultation with the heirs of the authors. Minor defects.