SE.S.TA Blog

🇬🇧 | How can a work created for one artist’s body be re-performed by another? This spring, the Albertina Modern in Vienna concluded its extensive retrospective of Marina Abramović. Among the performers who reperformed her iconic pieces was the Czech dancer and choreographer Denisa Musilová, who will lead a workshop at this year's KoresponDance from 17 to 19 July, produced by the SE.S.TA Centre for Choreographic Development in Žďár nad Sázavou.

🇬🇧 | “An architect of place” – Gilles Marty, founder of the Grenoble-based studio INCA, has given up “pouring concrete” in his architectural practice to allow the places he shapes to resonate on their own terms. He champions the idea that “the most beautiful square metres are the ones we leave untouched”. This is a translation of the provocative title of his book, completed during his writing residency at SE.S.TA in Žďár nad Sázavou. He designed the New Generation Museum in the grounds of the Baroque chateau and is now completing the transformation of a former convent into the Vysočina Cultural and Creative Centre – Hub 800. At this year’s KoresponDance Festival, he will present the book – an architectural manifesto – in the Talk Next discussion series. An excerpt appears in the interview below.

🇬🇧 | Can a museum be lit by daylight alone – and still capture “a rare ray of light"? What happens when light strikes a living body – why does a deer freeze in the headlights while a dancer comes alive? Why does a lighting designer who freezes like a deer in the headlights devote her life to light? With lighting designer Pavla Beranová, we discuss her book Light and Exhibition Space, and the both visible and unvisible impact of gallery or theatrical lighting. Pavla Beranová will also be presenting her book at the Talk Next discussion forum at the SE.S.TA's KoresponDance Festival in Žďár nad Sázavou (17–19 July 2026).

🇬🇧 | We met with Sue Schröder, an American choreographer with Czech and German roots who has been collaborating with the SE.S.TA Centre for Contemporary Development in recent years, during her several-day spring residency at Žďár Castle. There, she launched an artistic-participatory project on the theme of water and memory, Braiding Time, Memory and Water. After the opening day, during which she met with locals interested in the project and engaged them in various creative activities, I met with Sue to learn about her methodology, her artistic and non-artistic goals, her sources of inspiration, and her roots – both family and professional. To make it clear what we were talking about, I’ll recap what was actually happening.

🇨🇿 | Se Sue Schroeder, americkou choreografkou s českými a německými kořeny, která v posledních letech spolupracuje s Centrem choreografického rozvoje SE.S.TA, jsme se setkaly během jejího několikadenního pobytu na jaře na zámku Žďár. Zahájila tam umělecko-participativní projekt na téma vody a paměti, adaptaci svého projektu Braiding Time, Memory and Water. Po úvodním dni, během kterého se setkala s místními obyvateli, kteří se o projekt zajímají, a zapojila je do různých tvůrčích aktivit, jsme se sešly, abych se dozvěděla více o její metodologii, uměleckých i ne-uměleckých cílech, zdrojích inspirace a jejích kořenech – jak rodinných, tak profesních. Aby bylo jasné, o čem jsme spolu mluvily, shrnu, co se ten první den vlastně dělo.