Motto: In an age when growing numbers of people tend to think dangerously alike, art´s capacity to suspend, even for a moment, our habitual ways of seeing may well prove to be of its greatest value.
Today we visited DOX Centre for Contemporary Art in Prague 7 just over the river. Take an opportunity to experience some of the culture of Prague. I really like their DOX's above, and it's so true: The tragedy of Europe is that Nationalism combined with ideologies such as Communism and National Socialism, wanted people to think alike, and it almost destroyed Europe. Art is important, because artists help us to think and feel differently.
This quote greets visitors at the entrance to the gallery; indicating everybodies Rights are important, and by defending Human Rights we defend everybodies Rights. Political, economic and social liberalism are all connected; it comes as a package. Artistic freedom to express yourself in the various forms is vital for a thriving culture.
This is the work of Martin Rajnis an award winning architect in sustainable architecture. I can see some resemblance to the work of Glen Murcutt the Australian architecture.
Sustainable architecture is about touching the earth lightly and constructing a well insulated and well designed building to minimise energy use.
2014 is the 100 year anniversary of World War 1, and there was an interesting exhibition on that terrible conflict.
"In 1914 the Great War began ...........and has lasted ever since."
This quote on the wall is profound, because the shape of the modern world was formed by that war. In World War 1 three great Empires were destroyed; German/Austro-Hungary, Russia, and the Ottoman Empire. In Russia the Communists seized power, and the National Socialists in 1933 in Germany. World War 2 was in some ways a continuation of World War 1 with a clash between Communism and National Socialism to see who would dominate Europe and Eurasia. The Middle East conflicts were formed by the carve up of the Ottoman Empire after World War 1 laying the seed for the violence we see currently there. You might add Great Britain to the list of empires destroyed or if wasn't destroyed it was certainly crippled by World War 1, and completely bankrupt by 1941, and only could continue the war with Lend Lease Aid from the United States. World War 2 you could argue was just a continuation of World War 1 with the conflict over whether Communism or National Socialism would triumph in Europe. Czechoslovakia was formed after World War 1 in the carve up of the old Austro-Hungarian Empire, and of course fell behind the Iron Curtain after World War 2.
Fortunately neither National Socialism or Communism triumphed and Liberalism has emerged as the dominant ideology with just the level of government spending being the main issue. However, there are rumblings again from the East in the Ukraine, and the hastily drawn up borders from the carve up the Ottoman Empire after WW1 contribute to the sectarian violence in the Middle East. In that way you can say that, "the Great War began in 1914 and has continued ever since."
Travel Tips
DOX Centre for Contemporary Art
Poupetova, Prague 7
website - http://www.dox.cz/en/
