Vision – Burning of Christ

Kristek’s first experiments with flame date back to this era and the atmosphere of Kristek’s house-studio in Hustopeče (Czechoslovakia). It was in the former settlement of his mother’s family, the Lavický Soapworks, that was already in ruins by that time. The artist wanted to go beyond the boundaries of a perfect imitation of the world. At first, he created a realistic Christ made of cast iron. The expressions of Christ on the graves were always attracting his attention during his frequent rambles through cemeteries. He fixed the depiction of Christ itself on a cross which he put into a frame. Then, he continued to melt Christ using a flame. This deliberate artistic destruction was an experimental encounter of realism, an element and coincidence.
Kristek breathlessly observed how a symbol of faith was melting under his hands, just like he perceived it in the Czechoslovakia of that time. Then, he completed the assemblage with a cobweb converging at Christ’s head and named it Vision – Burning of Christ.