At this time, the Old Town Square in Prague was lit up with the traditional Christmas decorated spruce tree. For the first time in its long existence, the Botanical Garden in Troja was illuminated by the spectacular decorative glass of Pačink in garden architecture as dusk fell, making it a unique tourist magnet until 2 February next year. Something like this is not immediately visible in our country or in Europe, except for Kunratice in the Novobor region in northern Bohemia.
We will discuss what we mean by this in the second half of this article. Now we must turn to the event itself, which literally has queues of people, including families with children, curious to see the combination of light and glass in the fantastic installations of disparate flowers, plants and animals tastefully incorporated into the natural grounds of the botanical complex under the name Crystal Garden.
Welcome to the Crystal Garden
Visiting during the day, we can admire the beauty of the glass in the sunshine. After dark, let the play of lights, shadows and even music take over. The daytime tour is possible from Monday to Sunday between 9.00 and 16.00, in the evening it is possible to visit the featured unique exhibition from Thursday to Sunday from 17.00 to 21.00.
Fantastic plants have different names, such as the shining glasswort, the anemone, the opal flower or the cobalt flower, and there is also the legendary carnivorous Adela (be careful not to touch, she hasn't eaten yet). Among the glassy flowers, leaves, tendrils and various shoots we can find colourful flamingos and lizards. Selected light installations are enriched by interactive elements, including a special audiovisual show. A special feature of the exhibition is the reproduced tones of the glass harp performed by Petr Špatina, which will be heard at selected installations. The compositions used for this occasion give the glass pieces by the family-owned company Pačinek Gllas a unique atmosphere.
A big attraction is the crystal nativity scene, where those interested can take a selfie or have their picture taken by a professional and become a beautiful Christmas angel at least for a while. Leaving the colourful clusters of fragile beauty, we still have another wonderful experience ahead of us. A unique exhibition Ikebana and Czech glass was prepared by Pačinka's friend and long-time collaborator, promoter of Czech glass abroad Ladislav Kopecký. It can be found a few steps away from the ZOO in the entrance hall to the Botanical Garden in Trojská Street, from where you can continue towards the Crystal Garden. There are also informative panels from which we quote the following curriculum vitae.
A representative of high-end handmade work
One of the most important contemporary art glassmakers not only in the Czech Republic, but also internationally, was born in 1972 in Litoměřice. He graduated from the glassmaking apprenticeship in Nový Bor, and in 1990 he joined the legendary glassworks in Chřibská, which was founded in 1414, where he perfected the technique of shaping glass. After that he worked for many years in the AJETO LINDAVA glassworks, alongside such glassmaking aces as Bořek Šípek and Petr Novotný. Among other things, he completed a number of glassmaking trips and internships (USA, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy and other glassmaking countries), where he not only presented his own work, but also took over various foreign experiences. In 2007 Jiří Pačinek founded his own glassworks in Lindava near Cvikovo and at the same time the family glass company PAČINEK GLASS. In 2015, he moved with the manufactory to nearby Kunratice, where over the next ten years he built an amazing glassmaking complex with a glassworks, a glass canteen, a museum-gallery and a small tourist area with accommodation in cottages, in close proximity to the widely known and visited Glass Garden, where, in addition to flowers and various plants and animals, there are also glass trees, vineyards and other tourist magnets. In fact, we can now see the beauty of the aforementioned with our own eyes in Prague's Troja. Pačinka's glassmaking area is complemented by the so-called Crystal Temple, a local church serving as an atypical gallery of Czech crystal from the glassmaking pipes of Pačinka's blowing party. More on www.pacinekglass.com
Jiří Pačinek creates technically demanding decorative sculptures of various forms and utilitarian glass objects - lamps, vases, bowls, plates and other objects. His works are part of private art collections at home and abroad, including design companies, museums and galleries. Unique are his works in the field of glass garden architecture, not forgetting his masterpiece from last year, when he produced sixty monumental sculptures in crystal for the American dream movie factory - Hollywood.
Ivan Cerny
PHOTO - archive
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