Tadeáš Podracký (*1989) is a Czech artist working on the border between free art and design. He is a graduate of the Academy of Arts and Crafts in Prague, where he studied in the glass studio, and the Dutch Design Academy in Eindhoven. He conceives of his works as challenging experiments in shape and material, pushing (and crossing) the boundaries of design objects into the realm of free art. His works are therefore more like complex sculptures that mask their original function with their surface as mimicry. This hybridity is also evident in Podracka’s perception and approach to the design of objects, whose original purpose he first deconstructs and then rebuilds/reassembles in such a way that it remains only implied. His sources of inspiration are shapes, materials and patterns canonized in the history of art and design, which he turns on their reverse and thus disarms the viewer’s eye.
Tadeáš Podracký work has been exhibited at many international fairs focused on applied art, as well as in galleries and institutions: e.g. Chamber Gallery New York, Design Miami Basel, FOG San Francisco, Maison et Objet Paris, Mint Gallery London, Mudac Museum Lausanne, Het Nieuwe Instituut, Salone del Mobile Milano, London Design Festival. He is the recipient of several international awards, including “Czech Grand Design” in the category “Discovery of the Year” and “AD Design Award Germany” “Vintage Reloaded”. He is represented by Side Gallery in Barcelona and since 2023, together with Romana Drdová, he has been the head of the K.O.V. (Concept – Object – Meaning) studio at the Academy of Arts and Crafts in Prague.