The construction of infinity
12. 6. 2026 - 9. 8. 2026
The work of Zdeněk Lhotský (*1956) is most often associated with glass—a medium whose technical and artistic possibilities he has been exploring with extraordinary ingenuity for decades. Alongside this well-known line of work, there is another, less prominent but no less essential area for understanding the artist’s thinking: drawing and digital imagery. It is precisely this area that the exhibition *Construction of Infinity* focuses on, presenting a collection of works created in parallel with his glass art and revealing the deeper principles that permeate his entire oeuvre.
Lhotský’s drawings and large-format digital prints are not based on a direct depiction of reality. Their starting point is structure—the fundamental building principle through which the artist explores the relationship between order and transformation, rule and freedom. Here, geometry does not function as a closed system, but as a living organism that is constantly developing, branching out, transforming, and organically modifying itself.
The construction of infinity thus represents precisely this process. In Lhotský’s conception, infinity arises from repetition, rhythm, and variation. It is neither an abstract idea nor a metaphysical symbol. Every element is part of a larger whole; every structure suggests the possibility of a continuation beyond the limits of the visible. The viewer finds themselves before images that have no clear beginning or end. They are rather a fragment of a larger system, the true scope of which remains open to the imagination.
This principle is evident both in small drawings created with a ballpoint pen, fountain pen, or micro-pencil, and in monumental digital compositions. Although they are created using different technological processes, they are united by an extraordinary concentration and a sense of rhythm within the pictorial plane. Lines layer, multiply, and mirror one another. Symmetry becomes a pattern. Upon closer observation, the stable form begins to dissolve into a multitude of alternative readings. The image becomes an environment into which the viewer enters, rather than an object of observation.
In many of his works, one can also discern the influence of architectural thinking. Vertical axes, modular repetition, and the use of proportion create a visual order that extends beyond the picture plane itself. The space of the Dům Radost provides an exceptionally natural context for this work. The building’s functionalist architecture is based on structural rationality, rhythm, and precisely organized space. Likewise, Lhotský’s works grow out of the discipline of geometric order. However, this is not geometry as a closed system, nor is it an ornamental play of forms, and thus Dům Radost does not become merely a venue for presentation. It is an active part of the exhibition. The vertical character of the architecture resonates with the verticality of the paintings; their rhythm finds an echo in the rhythm of the building modules, and their spatial dynamics unfold as visitors move through the building. What is suggested by a line in a drawing continues in the architecture as actual space.
Lhotský’s work also serves as a reminder that precision and intuition are not opposites. Behind the seemingly rational structures lies an intense personal experience of concentration, patience, and constant testing of the work’s inner energy. The artist repeatedly emphasizes that technical perfection alone is not enough. What is decisive is the presence of a certain tension, vitality, and inner conviction. It is precisely this energy that permeates the exhibited works and transforms their geometric austerity into a living visual organism that immediately draws the viewer in.
The Construction of Infinity is therefore an exhibition that reveals the possibilities of vision while simultaneously offering a glimpse into its complexity. It explores the moment when order transforms into movement, drawing into space, and the image into an open field of relationships. It offers a connection to art that does not create closed meanings but opens up space for discovery—the discovery of a space in which construction does not become a limitation but a means of transcending the boundaries of the visible.
Exhibition text: Bára Alex Kašparová
The exhibition is taking place at Dům Radost, nám. W. Churchilla 2, Prague 3.