Tomáš Spevák - Blind Man's Buff

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In his latest work, Tomáš Spevák focuses mainly on two thematic lines that blend together in his "Blind Man's Buff" solo exhibition. One of the themes was the author's stay in sunny California, which he portrayed on his canvases under the cover of night. The Sunset Boulevard motif mixes with the darkened streets where the car occasionally runs, otherwise they remain empty. A gradual dawn promises an incoming day that is still not coming. Abandoned streets offer us a moment of loneliness, yet they keep keeping us in a certain amount of restlessness and tension from what comes next. The Spevak's paintings blend realistic scenes with up to impressionistic moments, rather than directly capturing the moment, which disappears in the same moment, rather than feelings and emotions. The scenery can look similar in many respects at first sight, but it only confirms us that the night city is always the same. It does not matter whether it is an American metropolis or a Czech town. There is always something mysterious and incomprehensible in it. Both thematic themes begin to blend in the title painting "Blind Man's Buff", which gave the title to the entire exhibition. Playing children as if they were running out of the night street. Other canvases with scenes of blind-duck play take over the title figures, which, however, gradually change on individual screens. It accompanies us with a story that is hidden behind ordinary child play, but it can mean much more. At one of the moments, the children seem to play on a busy city street, while they are fleeing into the countryside. But can it offer them more safety than the streets? How long will it stay and will children ever end up with their game? There is a constantly present movement in all pictures, which is characteristic of the Spevak's work. It is always a stopped moment of everyday stories, of which we always know only a part. Then it is up to us to let the story be narrated through one of the canvases or to look at the whole set in a comprehensive way. text: Diana Kněžínková