The Art Newspaper

A heart for Havel

By The Art Newspaper. From In The Frame
Published online: 10 February 2012

Artists Lukas Gavlovsky, left, and Roman Svejda, right, work on a memorial to former Czech Republic's President Vaclav Havel (Photo: Petr David Josek/AP)

Conceived in honour of the late former Czech president Vaclav Havel, a heart-shaped memorial made from candle wax was installed at a square next to the National Theatre in Prague on Friday. Made from wax recycled from the thousands of candles that were lit at impromptu memorial sites around the country after Havel’s death on 18 December, Heart for Vaclav Havel—inspired by the heart Havel often included alongside his signature—stands approximately two metres high, is made from more than two tonnes of wax and has an opening through which visitors can enter.

“For a moment people can find themselves in a very unusual space surrounded by a mass that has a unique energy and story,” said the artist behind the project, Lukas Gavlovsky. Dozens of volunteers helped him and his artistic partner Roman Svejda finish the work, which took 20 days to prepare and approximately one month to build. “[The heart] passed through the hands of many people and they really all somehow enriched it,” says Gavlovsky.

Depending on the weather, Heart for Vaclav Havel will remain on the square until April.

—Joann Plockova