Legs out of Water is a sculpture by Kurt Gebauer, placed in the center of a pond in Jesenik, Czech Republic. Legs out of Water is part of an exhibition at the Jesenik Gallery of Contemporary Art. His sculpture consists of three pairs of legs sticking out of the pond. It looks like three girls doing handstands in the water. The piece is supposed to represent joy because the girls are playing together. The sculpture has gotten different reactions. Some visitors think the piece is carefree and fun, while others find it inappropriate. The point of having sculptures outside is to grab the attention of people passing by and evoke a reaction.
Legs out of Water - Kurt Gebauer
245 km away is Shark Herders, a sculpture placed outside of Vysehrad Castle. The sculpture by Michal Gabriel consists of five sharks swimming above the grass and six male figures following behind them. The piece represents make-believe and lightheartedness. The sculpture is open to interpretation and draws attention to itself. The sharks and figures are dark brown with holes covering them.
Shark Herders - Michal Gabriel
Right down the road in Prague, is the sculpture Man Hanging Out by David Cerny which depicts a man dangling over the cobblestone. The figure looks like a man about to plummet to his death. Some people think the sculpture is a person attempting suicide. The sculpture represents Sigmund Freud and intellectualism. The figure has traveled around the world because of its popularity. David Cerny is one of the most (if not the most) famous contemporary visual artists in the Czech Republic.
Man Hanging Out - David Cerny
In Utero, another sculpture by David Cerny in Prague, is located at Gallery Golf Hostivar. The six-meter stainless steel figure is a pregnant woman on her knees. The piece is open to interpretation, but her provocative pose may suggest she is trying to be seductive. She also looks to be in labor.
In Utero - David Cerny
Sources:
CzechTourism. “The 10 Most Famous Figures in Czech Sculpture · #VisitCzechia.” · #VisitCzechia, 9 Nov. 2023, www.visitczechia.com/en-us/news/2023/11/n-czech-sculpture.
“Legs out of Water: Provocative Artist Kurt Gebauer Makes People Take Notice.” Radio Prague International, 19 Aug. 2024, english.radio.cz/legs-out-water-provocative-artist-kurt-gebauer-makes-people-take-notice-8826045.
“Sculpture Line Prague.” Prague | Sculpture Line, www.sculptureline.cz/en/city/prague. Accessed 22 Aug. 2024.
Ugc. “Man Hanging Out.” Atlas Obscura, Atlas Obscura, 5 Nov. 2015, www.atlasobscura.com/places/man-hanging-out.
Written by: Mikayla Faires