Portrait of Václav Havel by Antonín Hepnar

Product detailed description

A true rarity!

This exceptional wooden sculpture was designed and crafted by Antonín Hepnar, a Czech artist also known as the master of woodturning. Hepnar developed his love of craftsmanship and woodworking as a child in his father's workshop. He further honed his woodturning skills and sense of materials at the Secondary School of Arts and Crafts in Prague's Žižkov district. His final school project was the now iconic Amanita lamp. Fifty-seven years later, in 2010, Hepnar won the main prize at the Designblok show. Hepnar became famous for his unique lamps, which bore his unmistakable signature, and he produced and hand-painted his designs himself. His favourite wood to work with was hardwood from deciduous trees. It is said that he made each design in no more than five pieces.

The rotating profile of Václav Havel's face is part of Hepnar's series, 'Portrait in Design', in which he created silhouettes of famous figures. Other faces portrayed include that of the legendary Italian violinist and composer Niccolò Paganini. Havel's profile is made up of three pieces of linden wood that were modelled on a lathe and coated in gold paint. Three colours hide in the cut through the material –⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ white, blue and red. These colours refer to the Czech national flag, thereby emphasising one of the most important aspects of Havel's identity as a pivotal figure in Czechoslovak and Czech history. The portrait changes slightly when rotated and is only visible at a certain angle. Havel's features emerge particularly clearly when the bust is illuminated and casts a shadow on the wall.

The artist has signed the underside of the bust.

Take a look at other works associated with the work of Antonín Hepnar in our collection.