Cross Head
red glass, fused in a mould, cut and polished, signed and dated Libenský - Brychtová 1988 - 2004, 97 x 70 x 25 cm, original green stand included (Zí)

Literature: Klasová M., Libenský Brychtová, Gallery, Praha 2002, p. 166 – 167, fig. 176, 177 - casting from 1998

In 1983, Jaroslava Brychtová leaves the center for fusing glass in Železný Brod and, together with her husband, she opens her own studio with a quality base for making fused sculptures. Their work reached its peak in the 1980s. During this incredibly prolific period, they made a whole series of seminal sculptures (Metamorphoses, Seats, Heads and Thrones). The dominant sign of this period is a clearly built composition of the object, where the authors work with shifting the surfaces of geometric objects, layering and blending them. They also return to colorful glass, thanks to which the objects gain heretofore unknown optical qualities. The combination of polished and matte surfaces plays a significant role, and they often use glass’s rough structure on the edges. Visually, the object is perceived through the modelled color intensity of the light shining through it. As the light changes, the visual character of the sculpture changes along with it. A characteristic trait of Cross Head is the geometric stylization of a head and the playful optical perception of the glass. The artistic duo created Cross Head in 1988. The piece on offer is an author’s replica from 2004.
The artistic duo of Jaroslava Brychtová and Stanislav Libenský lived and worked in mutual symbiosis for fifty years. Their collaboration produced works that significantly contributed to the forming of modern glass esthetics. Their works can be found in the collections of the most important art galleries and museums in the world. Their work has an irreplaceable position in the history of art in the 20th century.
A typical feature of the Cross Head is its geometric stylization and how it plays with the optical perception of glass as matter. The object was created in 1988. The work on offer is a replica by the author dating from 2004.