The exhibition at UMPRUM will commemorate cabin life of the 1970s through the lens of Štecha

Prague - This afternoon at the Academy of Art and Design (UMPRUM), an exhibition of photographs by Pavel Štecha titled "Cottage Owners" will begin. The phenomenon of cottage ownership has been explored by Štecha (1944 to 2004), a significant photographer and founder of the photography studio at this school, since his studies at FAMU and was showcased at his first solo exhibition at the Činoherní Club in 1978.
The architecture of the current exhibition loosely refers to the 9 & 9 exhibition in Plasy (1981), where one of Štecha's cottage owners - a photograph of a man leaning on a shovel - was placed in the space in life size. The photographs are installed as self-sufficient aesthetic objects, emphasizing their refined documentary style at the expense of documentary function.
Pavel Štecha studied photography at Prague's FAMU. From the 70s to the early 90s, he served as a teaching assistant at the school, while also completing several internships at art schools abroad. In 1990 and 1991, he was the vice-dean of FAMU. In 1993, he established the photography studio at the Academy of Art and Design, where he has taught ever since. This year, the school celebrates 130 years since its founding, and according to the school's spokesperson Kamila Stehlíková, the anniversary serves as an opportunity to commemorate this significant figure in Czech photography.
Although Štecha's photographic vision of the world is exceptional in the domestic environment, his photographs have recently faded somewhat from public interest. In the Czech context of the 70s, his thorough approach to working with the chosen theme, often underpinned by collaboration with sociologists, is unique.
As noted by the curator and photography theorist Hana Buddeus in the exhibition text, "strict" shots of cottage owners allow for a comparison of some of Štecha's photographs with the work of the famous American photographer Walker Evans and place them within the context of art history. Similarly, Anna Fárová spoke of "the austerity of communication" in connection with Štecha's photographs, "the removal of all unnecessary elements that distract from the ultimate intention." The exhibition will run until October 31 and takes place in collaboration with the Fotograf festival.