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The beauty in her surreal photographs is always a little suspect, with color turning into a visual snare that draws the viewer into hidden layers of the subconscious.
Behind this seemingly unrestrained imagination lies a carefully constructed order: each image is the result of a patient process – from initial sketches to handcrafted costumes and objects. This interplay of discipline and fantasy reflects Bara Prasilova’s own background: born under communism and shaped by the transition to capitalism, she carries in her work the tension of two systems, woven deep into her artistic DNA.
For Prášilová, physical reality is not a backdrop but a challenge — one that pulls her work out of the safety of imagination and back into contact with the body, space, and the friction of the real world.
Her work has been exhibited internationally, including in Vienna, Basel, Paris, New York, and the United Arab Emirates. She is a two-time Czech Grand Design Photographer of the Year, a Hasselblad Masters Award recipient, and a Clio Award winner for video work. Her projects are part of major private collections and the permanent collection of the Moravian Gallery in the Czech Republic.
Behind the scenes: Without Clouds (2021), 12 sec.
TEDx Prague Women: A Square Metre of My Subconscious (2024)
Harper’s Bazaar (2024) — Art Issue feature
CV
2012 — MFA (MgA), Institute of Creative Photography, Silesian University in Opava, Faculty of Philosophy and Science, Czech RepublicSelected Solo & Two-Person Exhibitions2024 — Solo Exhibition, Fog Gallery, Bratislava, Slovakia
2024 — Two-Person Exhibition: Embodied Politics, Galerie Michael Bella, Vienna, Austria
2021 — Solo Exhibition: Circles, Czech Centre Sofia, Bulgaria
2017 — Solo Exhibition: One & Three Photographs, Galerie Claude Samuel, Paris, France
2017 — Solo Exhibition: Evolve, IPCI – Instituto de Produção Cultural e Imagem, Porto, Portugal
2014 — Solo Exhibition: Evolve, PAC Gallery, Prague, Czech Republic
2012 — Solo Exhibition: Air Force, Czech Centre Budapest, Hungary
2011 — Solo Exhibition: Concrete Island, Fotografic Gallery, Prague, Czech RepublicSelected Group Exhibitions2025 — Odvaha (Courage), Museum of Decorative Arts, Prague, Czech Republic
2025 — Sister of a Sister of a Sister, Leica Gallery, Prague, Czech Republic
2024 — Summer Art Salon, Kodl Contemporary, Prague, Czech Republic
2023 — European Summer, Fin Gallery, Melbourne, Australia
2022 — Art Design Fashion, Museum of Applied Arts, Brno, Czech Republic
2019 — I Am Woman, Centre of Photography Art, Yekaterinburg, Russia
2017 — Immediate Temples, Museum of Modern Art, Olomouc, Czech Republic
2012 — Now and Wow: The Rebirth of Street Fashion Photography, The Langhans Gallery, Prague, Czech Republic
2010 — Young Czech Women Photographers, Bratislava Castle, Slovakia
2006 — Frame 005, Central European House of Photography, Bratislava, Slovakia
2006 — Frame, The Brno House of Art, Brno, Czech Republic
2006 — Six, Prague House of Photography, Prague, Czech RepublicSelected Art Fairs & Festivals2025 — Group Exhibition: Joie et refuge, Czech Centre, Photo Saint Germain, Paris, France
2025 — Group Presentation, Photo Basel, Basel, Switzerland
2023 — Solo Exhibition: Circles, Tschechisches Zentrum Wien, Foto Wien Biennale, Vienna, Austria
2023 — Solo Exhibition: Circles, Photo Biennale Ostend, Ostend, Belgium
2023 — Solo Exhibition: Circles, Xposure Photo Festival, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
2015 — Solo Exhibition: Espacio Artnexus, Bienal Internacional de Fotografía Bogotá, Bogotá, Colombia
2015 — Group Exhibition: Past Future, Triennale der Photographie, Container City, Hamburg, Germany
2011 — Solo Exhibition, Off Festival, X Gallery, Bratislava, Slovakia
2010 — Group Exhibition, Prague Photo, Mánes Gallery, Prague, Czech RepublicSelected Awards & Honors2023 — Book of the Year, Association of Professional Photographers of the Czech Republic
2019 — Bronze Award, Clio Awards (Audio Visual Category), New York, USA
2019 — Gold Award, Art Directors Club Awards (Photography Category), Prague, Czech Republic
2017 — Grand Prix, FotoFest Košice, Slovakia
2014 — Hasselblad Masters Award, Gothenburg, SwedenArtist Books & Monographs2022 — Circles, artist monograph, edited by Thomas Beachdel, published by PositiF, Czech RepublicSelected Publications & Press2024 — Cover Feature — Art Issue (March) — Harper’s Bazaar Czech Republic — Print
2023 — Florian Gucher — Review of solo exhibition in Vienna — Artmagazine.cc — Austria — Online
2022 — Documentary feature on artistic work — Czech Television (Gejzír) — Broadcast
2021 — Ondřej Horák — Featured Artist — A Guide to a Restless Territory (Průvodce neklidným územím) — Labyrint Publishing — Print
2015 — Donatella Montrone — Feature on Hasselblad Masters Winner — British Journal of Photography — Online
2010 — Denis Brudna — Cover Feature & Feature Article — Photonews Magazine — Germany — PrintCollectionsMoravian Gallery — Brno, Czech Republic (public collection)Professional Activities2024 — TEDx Women Prague — Talk on artistic work and personal journey — Prague, Czech Republic
2022 — Artistic Commission, National Theatre, Prague, Czech Republic
2021 — Artistic Commission, National Theatre, Brno, Czech Republic
2016, 2018, 2021 — Grand Jury Member, Hasselblad Masters Award, Gothenburg, Sweden
2014 — Artist Collaboration, IKEA Art Limited Collection — InternationalProfessional Affiliations & Ambassadorships2016 – 2017 — Hasselblad Ambassador — Global
2009 – 2012 — Quiksilver Women Ambassador — EuropeGallery Representation The Chemistry Gallery — Prague, Czech Republic
Fin Gallery — Melbourne, Australia