The exhibition entitled Everything by 39 for the first time comprehensively presents the work of one of the most striking Czech designers of the middle generation - Maxim Velčovský. It has been conceived marking his forthcoming fortieth birthday and the ambiguous meaning of the title oscillates between the "marble" of a retrospective and the ambiance of popular cheap sales which will also bear on the visual form of the exhibition.
The project primarily concentrates on Velčovský's iconic works such as the Pure Whiteporcelain cup or the Waterproof Wellington shoe vase. It will show the most important materialized designs for the Qubus studio, Křehký, Mint London and Lobmeyr Wien. In addition, it will present creative works transcending to free art - sets of household objects, the documentation of provocative actions or unpublished photograph cycles. It will also permit a peek into the designer's personal mythology, whether through childhood drawings or curiosity collections.
Velčovský's sometimes almost cult-like products and the secret formative world, which are the essence of the designer's characteristic redesign approach exploiting, among other things, general traits of Czechdom, including the tradition of home DIY. The exhibition incorporates an independent presentation by students of the Studio of Ceramics and Porcelain at the Academy of Art, Architecture and Design in Prague, which is headed by Maxim Velčovský.
The accompanying programmes will offer, alongside a guided tour, several workshops led by the artist. Together with the exhibition the first monographic catalogue of Maxim Velčovský will be created with graphic design by the Ex Lovers studio from Prague, visually very closely linked to the exhibition, so much so that it might be considered a literal translation of the exhibition to paper.
The 'baptizing' (launch) of the catalogue will take place in the presence of Maxim Velčovský in the Museum of Applied Arts on 5/5 from 6pm.
MAXIM VELČOVSKÝ(1976) is one of the most outstanding Czech designers of his generation, whose work equally well resonates in the international context. He graduated from the UMPRUM in Prague, where he has been in charge of the Studio of Ceramics and Porcelain for almost five years. In 2002 he co-founded the Qubus studio, which has played an important part in the Czech environment in popularising design towards the public, as has the Blok magazine where he has been on the editorial staff from its inception. He is the initiating figure of the "new wave" of Czech design. In 2007 he was awarded with the Designer of the Year title. His works are represented, for example, in the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, the Neue Sammlung in Munich or the Design Museum in Lausanne. He is the art director of Lasvit Co. with branches around the globe.
