Tomáš Dolejš

Tomáš Dolejš is a sculptor from Karlovy Vary who works under the name STEEL ART. His sculptural career began with a commission for the sculpture Golden Elsa (Golden Angel) for the cult Karlovy Vary music club Rotes Berlin; he says himself that he did not expect that sculpture to launch his career. Metal, in his own words, has been with him all his life in every form.

Materials and technique: he works chiefly with corten — steel that rusts only on the surface and does not corrode through, which gives it almost eternal durability — and also with stainless steel, steel wire and sheet, concrete, and in combinations with wood, glass and acrylic. Welding is his key technique; he experiments with various kinds of surface treatment. His style is characterised by largely geometric outlines, with the artist deliberately leaving out hands, legs or the face in order to capture mood and movement. Alongside his free work he takes commissions and works on interiors, trophies, lamps, clocks and jewellery; his portfolio includes over 40 sculptures from 2003 to 2026. He regards photographing his own sculptures in various compositions as a natural extension of his work.

Major works: A Hand Held Out — co-authored, a sculptural group placed on the border between the towns of Aš and Selb as a testament to Czech-German friendship; Courage (Art in the City 2023, Vodňany; later installed by the Výměník in Karlovy Vary, opposite the Lower Station); Divided Society (Art in the City 2024, Lannova třída, České Budějovice — the work was made at a sculpture symposium in Mladá Boleslav); Freedom… (Art in the City 2025, the monastery garden on Piaristické náměstí, České Budějovice); as well as Defiance, Hand, The Language of the Eyes (Komenského sady, Ostrava), My Confession, Aeroplane (the Drahomíra cinema café), Chieftain (the rock venue Slash bar), Meadow Fairy and Deer.

Exhibitions and symposia: solo exhibitions in Prague, Cheb, at the Vokno gallery in Osvračín and in Bayreuth, Germany; the joint project Identity with the photographer Štěpánka Jáchymová (shown in Doubí), whom he met at the Cheb Courtyards festival. He is a co-organiser of the Roots International Sculpture Symposium in Aš (2022), which was part of the celebrations of the 150th anniversary of Aš becoming a town and which produced eight sculptures in sandstone and steel. His works are held in a number of private collections in the Czech Republic and abroad, especially in Germany.