Artforest at ART PRAGUE 2026

Father and son – a joint presentation, unique artistic styles, mutual respect, and the joy of creation

Presentation Concept

A Fair is Not a Gallery

A broader selection made it possible to show not only individual works but also the connections between the themes, collections, and artistic styles of both authors.

ART PRAGUE is primarily a contemporary art fair. Over the course of several days, artists, gallery owners, collectors, patrons, and visitors—some of whom may be encountering contemporary art for the first time—meet here. This was reflected in the concept of this year’s Artforest presentation.

This was not an intimate curatorial selection of just a few works. The intention was to present a wider breadth of Jiří and Vilém Frič’s work, the diversity of their styles, their work with materials, and at the same time to show how individual thematic areas have connected over the years. Alongside this year’s new releases, several works from previous periods also appeared—not as a look back, but as important context.

The Mánes Space

An Open Installation That Could Breathe

The open space, high walls, and staircases became part of the installation itself.

This year’s event had a special atmosphere thanks to the Mánes Gallery itself. The bright modern space, natural light, high walls, and versatile staircase offered different possibilities for the sculptures than a traditional enclosed gallery. The Artforest exhibition was located right in the opening section of the fair and naturally invited a more open concept.

Walls, floors, landings, and the height of the space were all utilized. The works were not confined to a single axis but entered the visitor’s view gradually. This very openness corresponded well with the intention to show the diversity of the work and to let new pieces function alongside older sculptures, which helped in interpreting their thematic continuities.

New Collections and Continuities

Angels, Stingrays, Shells, and Symbols

The joint presentation at ART PRAGUE demonstrated the interconnectedness of Jiří and Vilém Frič’s work — different artistic styles, but themes that remain close. For Vilém, this year saw kinetic work meet a new collection of Guardian Angels and stingrays, while Cosmos recalled his long-term work with movement.

Jiří Frič presented the Shells collection as well as symbolic and playful works, such as Cheeky Angel or Ace of Hearts. Vilém perceives stingrays as sea angels — the wing motif here connects the theme of protection with water and the undersea world.

Three Distinct Lines of the Presentation

Common Themes, Each in Their Own Way

Vilém Frič

Stingrays, Guardian Angels, and movement. The stingrays, which the artist perceives as sea angels, were presented in various scales — from intimate works to striking formats exceeding one and a half meters. Alongside them, a new collection of Guardian Angels appeared. The kinetic sculpture Cosmos then recalled a long-term line of the artist’s work with movement.

Artforest

Interconnectedness without unification. The joint installation showed how the work of father and son can touch thematically and highlight each other. Natural shapes, angelic symbolism, water, movement, and work with stainless steel met here, yet each artist maintained his own visual language.

Jiří Frič

Pectoral, Shells, angels, but also butterflies and their symbolic shorthand. Jiří Frič developed not only the organic world of the Shells collection but also his own conception of angelic motifs. Alongside them, new works appeared based on a simple, legible symbol and playfulness — for example, Ace of Hearts or Cheeky Angel.

More Sculptures, More Connections

But ART PRAGUE is not just a place where sculptures are brought, installed, and taken away again after a few days. Meetings are an important part of the fair.

The larger number of exhibited works allowed visitors to follow the connections between collections, compare older and new works, and better understand how individual themes transform over time. For some, the concentration of sculptures might have been too high — but that, too, is part of a fair presentation.

Equally important are the meetings with collectors, patrons, colleagues, architects, gallery owners, and people who encountered Artforest’s work for the first time. It is often a personal conversation in front of a specific sculpture that brings a new perspective, a question, or an impulse for further work.

Meet the Works of Jiří and Vilém Frič in Person

Selected works can be presented in person by prior arrangement. Photographs provide an insight into their form and materials, but their true scale, light and atmosphere are best experienced in person.

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