The exhibition titled Corpus presents the basic building block of the art of David Čumalo. In Čumalo’s eyes, a corpus is not just a framework or foundation on which to create his art – it is a complex and multi-layered space in which colours, motifs, technique and symbolism come together. Corpus in Latin also means body, which is not present in David Čumal’s works, and for this reason, the works of Adriena Šimotová were chosen for the dialogue. His paintings are visual records and frequently contain motifs that reflect the various layers and the texture of this visual content, but they also reference the deeper emotional and cultural aspects of the aforementioned building block or foundation.
Čumalo’s art most frequently results from time spent in an unfamiliar place that acts as his studio. His inspiration comes directly in situ. Besides reflecting the many different impulses he thus absorbs, the final work also incorporates found materials (scraps, parquet flooring, cabinets) that often serve as a base onto which he paints or that is incorporated into the installation itself.
He makes repeated use of simple objects, things that protect our body or separate it from our surroundings, that act as a kind of shelter (coats, shirts, gloves). He also works with objects we might find in any household (tables, cabinets, chairs). Čumalo’s works are minimalist, with a representationalism bordering on abstraction. His approach to painting contributes to its technical brilliance and aesthetic qualities, and his works often blend with their surroundings.
In the art of David Čumalo, a cabinet – that seemingly ordinary piece of furniture – becomes a painting medium. He first began using the body (corpus) of cabinets as a base for painting while still a student at Prague’s Academy of Fine Arts (AVU). In his series Oblivion, he revisits his grandparents’ house. “Nothing is ever thrown out in my grandparents’ house. Everything is stored in cabinets, which are later moved out of the way. Out of curiosity, I began to explore them one by one. The many different letters, photographs and especially coats, caps and gloves that I came across forced me to confront my family history.”
DAVID ČUMALO (b. 1992) is an artist and painter. During his time at Prague’s Academy of Fine Arts, he studied painting under Robert Šalanda and Lukáš Machalický and graphics under Vladimír Kokolia. In 2018, he did an intra-school study exchange with Simon Starling in the Studio of the Visiting Teacher. This was followed by a foreign exchange at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp, where he studied in the InSitu3 studio and the painting studio and spent 2024–2025 doing a master’s degree program in painting. He has held numerous group and solo exhibitions, and his work can be found in various private collections.
The exhibition was supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic and the Statutory City of Hradec Králové.
