About the gallery
We are opening the Art brut Prague Gallery as the first exhibition space in Prague focused exclusively on the work of artists who, for various reasons, are unable or unwilling to join the mainstream art scene.
“Here, things are raised proudly
and more stabbingly,
the world is full of edges
on which we have
hurt ourselves many times.”
The quote, taken from Josef Čapek’s groundbreaking book The Most Modest Art, will greet all visitors at the entrance as a foreshadowing of the type of work they will encounter here.
To clearly define the gallery, the name was chosen after the painter Jean Dubuffet’s famous term art brut – usually translated in Czech as “art in its raw state”.
But not all the artists the gallery will represent necessarily fall into the category of art brut as it is usually conceived. Some of them, for various reasons, become outsiders, not even classifiable in this field.
The selection of the artists is basically conditioned by the absence of any conscious calculation in their work aimed at achieving success in the world of contemporary art.
The gallery also wants to support its artists by making their works available for sale.
Exhibitions
Borut Holland
QUANTUM CONCORD
10. 9.–10. 10. 2026
Curator of the exhibitions: Jana Šteflíčková and Jaromír Typlt
Borut Avram Holland (b. 1956) is a Slovenian artist with Jewish roots. He lives in a forest on a mountainside. At a certain point in his life, he completely withdrew from mainstream society for many years. During that time, he did not speak at all and was homeless for nearly two decades, until his friends and fellow artists built him a makeshift cabin as part of a volunteer project. Here, he spends his days living as a hermit. He lives without electricity and collects rainwater. At the same time, he frequently cycles to the library in a nearby town, where he studies and sends out extensive online correspondence, which he refers to as visual poetry. He enjoys traveling by train and sleeping out in the open.
He places a special emphasis on education, having graduated from the Faculty of Philosophy, Sociology, and Journalism in Ljubljana. His small house bears the inscription “Theological Quantum Academy of Fine Arts,” and it truly operates as a sort of forest university full of books, ranging from philosophical and spiritual writings to publications on mathematics and geometry.
Borut Holland devotes all his time to studying, painting, and spiritual activities. Recurring motifs in his paintings include ethereal metropolises, the angelic realm, and the cosmic world. The paintings often feature golden backgrounds, radiating something akin to ancient icons, yet viewed through the eyes of a child. Also present is a distinctive urbanism with glimpses into multiple dimensions.
Borut’s core activity is the continuous writing of his manuscript Metatheology, which numbers around 6,000 pages. He identifies with the Jewish faith, yet routinely wears a cross with Christ around his neck. He is strongly inspired by Eastern teachings, as well as various currents of philosophy and sociology. He thus merges concepts generally perceived as incompatible, describing his own approach as “signalist parallel Dadaism.”
In addition to occasional participation in group exhibitions, he has presented his works to the Slovenian public in several solo exhibitions (at galleries in Celje and Ljubljana). Borut Holland’s paintings were first shown in Prague in June 2022 at the New Libeň Synagogue, and later in 2024 at the Trigon bookstore. For the exhibition at the Art brut Praha gallery, we have also selected examples of Borut’s drawings, collages, sketches, and manuscripts. During the exhibition, on September 30, we will screen a documentary film portrait of Borut Holland titled Ra Dio.
Text: Jana Šteflíčková
About the authors
The main circle of authors is formed by the persons who create in the Studio of Joyful Creation at Letná: Dagmar Filípková, Šárka Hojaková, Dominik Jirsa, Jarmila Jandová, Marie Kohoutková, Václav Kuklík, Marie Kůsová, Lorenzo, Karel Pajma, Lukáš Paleček, Vojtěch Proske, George Radojčič, Iveta Horváthová (Rimini Filí), Ladislav Svoboda, Vojtěch Šůra will be presented here.
However, internationally known names such as Anna Zemánková or Zdeněk Košek will also be represented. Other authors who have already gained attention include Hana Fousková, La Inthonkaew, Ota Prouza, Helena Skalická and Tomáš Krupka.
Practical information
The gallery will be open five afternoons a week, Tuesday to Saturday 2 – 7pm.
www.artbrutpraha.cz
artbrut.praha@gmail.com
+420 606 028 942 (during opening hours)
+420 602 646 665 (out of hours)
Postal address: Galerie Art brut Praha, Resslova 300/6,
120 00 Praha 2 – Nové Město.
About the place and the founder
The gallery acquired its space after the renovation of a long unused technical building at St. Wenceslas Church in Zderaz.
The operator is the Altán Art association, which has so far been active mainly in Letná: in 2013 it opened the Studio of Joyful Creation here as the first Czech studio providing facilities for artists falling into the category of art brut, and in 2017 it opened up also to the wider public by establishing the ART Cultural and Community Centre, where senior citizens and people with disabilities develop their artistic interests together. Vladimír Drábek is the main representative of the association. More information on the website www.altanart.cz .
Curator
Jaromír Typlt (1973) is a poet, performer and essayist. During 2000-2010 he worked in Liberec as a curator of photography and contemporary art exhibitions at the Small Exhibition Hall and then at the U Rytíře Gallery. Since the end of the 1990s he has also helped to promote the work of overlooked authors, publishing the first book on Zdeněk Košek (2001), literary texts by Hana Fousková, František Novák and many others. In 2018, he started cooperation with the association Altán Art. He has long focused on the topic of “écrits bruts” – written expressions in art brut.
Gallery partners
Studio of Joyful Creation at Letná
Czechoslovak Hussite Church in Prague 2 – New Town
Graphic studio chapter
abcd praha
Media partners
Analogon
Revolver Revue
Souvislosti
I am convinced that a considerable circle of artists, those interested in art brut and the
Pavel Konečný, art brut collector
professional public can form around the Art Brut Prague gallery in a very short time. The
project is a positive response not only to initiatives stemming from the vibrant undercurrent of
our spontaneous creativity, but also responds to calls from foreign cultural institutions to
strengthen the voice of outsider art, including by improving intercultural cooperation and
dialogue across European borders.