“For Czechs, hockey is more than a sport”: New exhibition presents hockey through the ages
The National Gallery at Prague’s Kinsky Palace has been converted into a hockey fans paradise for a new exhibition titled “Get on the ice! Ice Hockey and Skating in Art”. The exhibit showcases skating and hockey in Czech fine art throughout the years, but as I discovered, the sport represents much more to the people of Czechia, and has deep roots in the nation’s political and social identity.
When you think of hockey, the first thing that comes to mind is probably the sound of skates on the ice, the clashes of sticks as players fight for the puck, and the ice arena where it all takes place. What probably doesn’t come to mind, is art. A new exhibition at the National Gallery’s Kinsky Palace is challenging this perception. Titled “Na led”, which translates as “get on the ice”, the exhibition features 100 works of art centred on hockey and ice skating in the Czech lands. Curator Anna Strnadlová, told me how hockey made its way into art traditions.
“Hockey was reflected in Czech art relatively late. In 1908, the Czech Hockey Association was founded in Bohemia, and three years later, we won our first gold medal in the European Championships in Berlin. But in fine art, it was much more common to see sports represented such as football or boxing. In 1959, there was another World Championship in the Czech Republic, and this was the moment where hockey as a subject was interesting for Czech artists.”
Even though ice hockey may not have made its way into artistic traditions until the 20th century, as we stroll through the exhibit, beautiful pictures depict happy ice skaters gliding across frozen rivers and ponds, a common theme as Strnadlová tells me.
“From 1850, Czech painters reflected skating in Bohmeia, so there are many romantic and realistic paintings from the Czech countryside and on the Vltava River. There were many ice rinks, and this was really a social moment for the people of Prague.”
If you’re familiar with Prague, or at all a fan of techno, then you might know the nightclub Fuchs, which stands on Štvanice Island that lies between the city’s Holešovice and Karlín districts. But long before it became a burgeoning scene for party goers, the island served another purpose, it was home to the first public skating stadium in Czechia.
“We have some documentary photos from the opening of the first ice stadium in Štvanice. Today, the only thing left of the stadium is the actual building from the 1930s, and a music club is there now. It was all a part of the stadium originally, and there used to be wooden boards that surrounded the ice rink.”
So why host an exhibition about hockey in art? What does the sport, which can be so brutal, have anything to do with the strokes of a paint brush? As Strnadlová explains to me, it’s because for Czechs, hockey is more than a game, it’s a part of the social and political fabric of this country.
“I think for Czechs, hockey is more than a sport. Especially during the time of the Soviet occupation, it wasn’t only about sport for us, it was also about a political fight. The Czechoslovaks, Soviets, and Canadians were the top three teams, and it was a really fierce battle between them. The whole nation watched these matches, and it was a really big thing for us.”
Naturally, the exhibition coincides perfectly with the upcoming Ice Hockey World Championships that are set to begin in Prague and Ostrava on the 10th of May.
“We have been waiting to host the World Championships for nine years in the Czech Republic. That’s why I created this exhibition – I was asking if hockey was reflected in fine arts, and if it was, how. I’m so happy it’s also located here at Kinsky Palace on Old Town Square, because it’s a very important place for Czech victory celebrations, especially Nagano in 1998, it was a really big party.”
So whether you’re a hockey fan, or a connoisseur of fine art, you can visit the exhibition at the National Gallery’s Kinsky Palace until October 2024, and enjoy the best of both worlds.
