Gabriela Těthalová

"Gabriela Těthalová’s paintings are bold, precise and speak in a highly contemporary and refined tone. In her most recent large-scale pieces, she develops complex compositions rich in layers, various depths of field and perspectives. Although her paintings are abstract in nature, she plays with imagination, narrative and exploration through small figurative or surrealistic elements.” (jury statement)

Gabriela Těthalová (1988) graduated from the Studio of Painting under the guidance of Professor Jutta Koether at the Hochschule für bildende Künste in Hamburg. She previously studied painting at the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design under Jiří Černický and Marek Meduna, at the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague and at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna. In 2013 she completed her master’s degree in Mathematics at Charles University in Prague. 

Her paintings are notable for their meticulous work with geometric shapes and a bold colour palette combined with quick gestural strokes. The composition is divided into many interlocking and overlapping surfaces that have a tendency to disrupt one’s spatial orientation. In relation to painting, Tethal understands the body as a tool for material production, creating a sense of urgency that is feminine, vulnerable and complex. She refers to historical tendencies in contemporary painting, such as the materialisation of poetry on canvas, or the connection between the painting process and its relationship to time - she perceives painting as a form of recording. 

Těthalová has exhibited at the Holešovická Šachta gallery in Prague, GAMPA in Pardubice, Industra in Brno, Hinterconti in Hamburg, the Czech Centre in Berlin and the NARS Foundation in New York.