Varvara Roza Galleries is delighted to present APPLECORE, Hynek Martinec’s debut exhibition with the gallery.
At a time when artificial intelligence is transforming the creation and circulation of images, APPLECORE explores questions of originality, authorship and human creativity through one of art history’s oldest and most enduring symbols: the apple. Continuing ideas first developed in Cyberlemon, Martinec’s acclaimed 2025 exhibition at DOX Centre for Contemporary Art in Prague, the new works bring together biblical imagery, still life traditions and contemporary technology to examine painting’s place in an increasingly digital world.
At the heart of APPLECORE is a major new body of paintings unveiled at Varvara Roza Galleries, where Martinec transforms familiar objects into complex and often unsettling compositions. Drawing on centuries of art history — from Renaissance painting to the tradition of nature morte — these works explore themes of knowledge, temptation, memory and transformation, while continuing the artist’s investigation into perception and the enduring role of painting.
Martinec comments: “APPLECORE continues ideas I began exploring in Cyberlemon, where fruit became a guide through the history of painting. ‘APPLECORE’ captures the moment before the Fall, when the apple remains untouched, just before Adam and Eve’s bite changes the course of human history. In the age of artificial intelligence, I return to this ancient image and ask what place these timeless stories have in a world where technology is transforming our relationship with images, memory and creativity. At the same time, the apple can simply remain an apple: a quiet, beautiful object beyond symbolism.”
Known for combining the technical mastery of Old Master painting with contemporary philosophical enquiry, Martinec is recognised as one of Europe’s leading figurative painters. His work has been exhibited internationally at institutions including the Royal Academy of Arts, the National Portrait Gallery, London, the National Gallery Prague, the National Museum in Stockholm and the National Gallery of Finland. He was awarded the prestigious BP Young Artist Award in 2007.
Though often described as a hyperrealist or photorealist, Martinec’s work resists easy classification. While rooted in extraordinary technical precision, his paintings combine imagery from diverse sources to create layered compositions that challenge assumptions about perception, memory and reality.
