Pavel Pospěch – Osamělí hrdinové

#1 min Barbora Vanická Čápová

16. 8. 2026

Pavel Pospěch, Osamělí hrdinové: Jak kultura autonomie rozleptává společnost, Praha: HOST, 2026
Pavel Pospěch, Osamělí hrdinové: Jak kultura autonomie rozleptává společnost, Praha: HOST, 2026
#50 AuthenticityReviewSociety

Why do we automatically choose uncertain and complicated solutions simply to convince ourselves we are following our own path? How easily can the influences of popular culture make us believe that the most ostentatious displays of consumerism express our deepest, most authentic selves? And how does this construct of instant prosperity directly shape the inhumane conditions under which goods are produced on the other side of the planet?

In the book Osamělí hrdinové (Lonely Heroes), sociologist Pavel Pospěch identifies the mechanisms behind our everyday decision-making, revealing that they may not be as healthy or as natural as they first appear. From the unattainable ambitions of a small crop-dusting airplane to a snail determined to outrun racing cars, he moves on to far more unsettling questions about the deeply ingrained features of our society: features that burden us as individuals while also placing strain on global infrastructures. It is liberating to realize that we do not have to spend our lives searching for our true selves; we can simply allow ourselves to be who we are.

Text | Barbora Vanická Čápová

#50 AuthenticityReviewSocietyConsumerism Psychology Authenticity

Barbora Vanická Čápová

is involved in the dramaturgy and strategic planning of the organization and is responsible for content production for Fotograf Zone and the print Fotograf magazine. She has long been engaged in journalism and artistic research focused on the production and presentation of visual content in hybrid interfaces.

#50 Authenticity

The expansion of generative artificial intelligence models, the refinement of deepfake technologies, advanced image synthesis, and even the filtering of reality through augmented and virtual reality are transforming previous demands on origin, “truthfulness” (Hito Steyerl, Jean Baudrillard), and the values of visual communication. Yet this issue does not concern manipulation alone — it also points to a deeper shift in the very framework through which we recognize and, above all, perceive authenticity. Continuous existence on the threshold between the physical and the virtual changes our visual sensitivity: we adapt to synthetic images (Lev Manovich, Katherine Hayles), refine our ability to recognize their origins (Peter Weibel), while simultaneously feeling less and less need to do so. The artificial becomes emotionally valid. We inhabit hybrid landscapes and situations (Joanna Zylinska, Jussi Parikka). The topic traces the shifts in aesthetics, technical possibilities, and the ethics of image production at the interface, but also transformations in viewers’ needs, expectations, and sensitivity to hybrid imagery on an individual level — and their influence on the need to anchor identity in a rapidly changing world. It explores authenticity not as a static value but as a dynamic relationship between author, technology, audience, and a world that no longer exists merely “in front of the lens.” The focus of the issue also opens up questions of the ethics of technological progress — linked to the broader social discourse on environmental impact, colonial heritage, marginalization of minorities, and other contemporary topics — seeking new methodologies that allow us to understand the authenticity of the image within wider societal contexts.

Fotograf Gallery is at risk of closing. Help us save it.

#2 min Editorial

Fotograf Gallery is at risk of closing. Help us save it.

Fotograf zone FundraisingCommunity

Next year, Fotograf Zone will celebrate its 25th anniversary. But right now, we don’t know whether our gallery on Jungmannova Street, one of the few independent spaces for photography and contemporary art in central Prague, will still be here to celebrate with us. It is a place where Czech photography meets the public, where we debate, create and come together, and where emerging artists can show their work alongside established names. For the first time, the gallery now needs your support. Help us keep it open.

Beyond Gallery Walls: Fotograf Zone Explores How We Live as Neighbors

#4 min Editorial

Beyond Gallery Walls: Fotograf Zone Explores How We Live as Neighbors

Fotograf zone ExhibitionFestival Fotograf Zone 2026

The 16th edition of Fotograf Zone Festival has announced its full program. From October 1 to 11, the festival will bring exhibitions of contemporary photography and visual art to Prague alongside performances, DJ sets, author readings, workshops, lectures, audio walks, a group bike ride through the city, and even a communal apple harvest. Under this year’s theme, Wild Kin, the festival explores different forms of multispecies coexistence and looks for ways not only to observe but also to experience our relationship with other living beings and the environments we share.

Editor’s Picks by Barbora Vanická Čápová

#3 min Barbora Vanická Čápová

Editor’s Picks by Barbora Vanická Čápová

Fotograf zone Editorial picsCurating

Selecting only five articles from such a wealth of outstanding content required considerable effort. That is why I decided to create a thematic selection focused on the motif of the island as a parallel in broader ideas about our society: places between acceptance and exclusion. Islands evoke a sense of unexplored territory, a place that could belong to us. But there is a catch: they operate under their own rules. What from the mainland appears different or out of place may, here, find space to exist outside the usual order.