Musoleum David Černý | Full Tour | Prague

Musoleum is a new gallery of sculptor and artist David Černý. The gallery gives space to modern art, both in a permanent exhibition of selected works by Černý and in the form of guest exhibitions. The five-storey gallery is located in the original historical Varna [Brewhouse] building, which is part of the old Smíchov Distillery that had been kept in ruins for more than 20 years. Finally, in 2021, the Trigema group and Černý’s architectural studio, Black n’ Arch, decided to give it a new lease of life and develop the site into a residential complex with a gastronomic and cultural centre.

David Černý
Born and raised in former Czechoslovakia, David Černý knows better than anyone what oppression means. With the fall of the Iron Curtain, a radical metamorphosis took also place in his birthplace Prague where he still lives. Černý himself says he is not a political animal, yet his artwork, unvarnished and confrontational, has everything to do with the truth of the day. Even his older works are more current than ever and clearly show that although time changes, the human brain does not.

Černý masters the art of balancing controversy and humor like no other. He first gained notoriety in 1991 when he painted a Soviet tank pink as a memorial to war in his native Prague. Since then his artistic acts of civil disobedience, grand scale installations, and exhibitions have continued to incite strong reactions worldwide.

Permanent installation of selected works
The permanent exhibition of selected works in the Musoleum gallery offers some of Černý’s most famous artwork. The 1200 square meter space, spread over five floors, is filled with the most recent pieces but also takes visitors back to the beginnings of the artist’s work. Among the artwork, you can also find installations that have never been seen by the public, as well as Černý’s designs and architectural projects on display.

“In my advanced age, I decided to put together an exhibition of all of my artwork that has been displayed all over the world or simply stored. Part of the gallery will be a space reserved for my hosts.”

Filmed at Musoleum David Černý, Smíchov, Prague 5, May, 2025