The Double 14. 11. 2025 – 5. 4. 2026
Curator: Kristýna Jirátová
Narcissus and his reflection in the water, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, The Picture of Dorian Gray or today’s digital avatars – doppelgangers have fascinated us for centuries. In literature, film and visual art, they recur time and again, as evil omens, divided alter egos, but also as protectors. The exhibition shows how the theme of the double has evolved from ancient myths to contemporary technologies, both in the works of Czech and international artists, such as Bohumil Kubišta, Jan Zrzavý, Andy Warhol, Milena Dopitová, and Petra Oriešková, and within the broader contexts of philosophy, literature and psychology. Come and enter worlds where people encounter themselves – sometimes with fear, sometimes with relief.
Exhibiting artists: Jiří Baštýř, Josef Bolf, David Böhm, Michal Cimala, Tomáš Císařovský, Ladislav Čarný, Jiří Černický, Jakub Čuška, Jiří David, Aron Demetz, Jaroslav Diviš, Milena Dopitová, Lucia Dovičáková, František Drtikol, Tereza Eisnerová, Ondřej Filípek, Vinzenz Fischer, František Foltýn, Andros Foros, Jana P Francová, Jiří Franta, Gregor Gaida, Martin Gerboc, Alexander Hackensmied, Matouš Háša, Siegfried Herz, Lumír Hladík, Kryštof Hošek, Iveta Horváthová, Martin Janecký, Věra Janoušková, Jakub Janovský, Tomáš Jetela, Svatopluk Klimeš, Vladimír Kokolia, Jan Konůpek, Vladimír Kordoš, Čestmír Krátký, Bohumil Kubišta, František Kupka, Filip Kůrka, Otakar Lenhart, Abbé Libanský, Helena Lukášová, Dora Maar, Christopher Makos, Ján Mančuška, Emila Medková, Bjørn Melhus, Georges Méliès, Štěpán Mikulenka, Yue Minjun, Hussein Moussa, Martin Mulač, Karolína Netolická, Petr Nikl, Victor Obsatz, Petra Oriešková, Petr Pavlík, Marilena Pelosi, Daniel Pešta, Jiří Petrbok, Ivan Pinkava, Viktor Pivovarov, Barbara Probst, Man Ray, Hans Richter, Paolo Mussat Sartor, Jan Slanina, Jiří Sopko, Adéla Součková, Ladislav Svoboda, David Strauzz, Jiří Surůvka, Adriena Šimotová, Marek Škubal, Adam Štech, Richard Štipl, František Štorm, Petr Štembera, Jan Švankmajer, Tomáš Švéda, Hugo Táborský, TEA, Mark Ther, Benedikt Tolar, Josef Anton Trčka, Lubomír Typlt, Josef Váchal, Jitka Válová, Květa Válová, Tomáš Vaněk, Tereza Vlčková, Andy Warhol, Vladislav Zabel, Ladislav Zívr, Jan Zrzavý
“Please, not here, I’ve already met myself twice here,” said the Czech poet Richard Weiner anxiously one night on the streets of Paris. Seeing oneself, considered a bad omen and often associated with predicting misfortune or even death, has appeared frequently in literature and art since the Romantic period. The struggle between good and evil within a person is one of the most common causes of split personality. Long before the emergence of the generally negative image of the double, however, ancient cultures perceived the spiritual doppelganger as a protective figure.
The double is an archetypal theme, stretching from ancient mythologies and legends to today’s rapidly evolving digital world. It is a phenomenon offering a great number of perspectives that cannot be fully encompassed. Therefore, the exhibition focuses on several key areas: Belief in the Double, Split and Multiple Personalities, Alter Ego, Mirror, Shadow, and Digital Double. In relation to the works of writers who have significantly contributed to the theme of doppelgangers and within the context of psychological and philosophical interpretations, the exhibition presents a diverse selection of works of art by hundreds of Czech and international artists from the 20th century to the present day, with some overlaps into earlier art. The exhibition features art media ranging from classical painting, sculpture, drawing and graphic art to photography, video and contemporary technologies.
The accompanying publication offers a more comprehensive and contextual analysis of the theme, authored by the curator and co-authors specialising in philosophy, literature and psychology.
