Miroslav Spadrna (pintorcheco) - Raíz de luz-sin reserve

Root of Light / Root of Light
Author: Miroslav Spadrna (Pintorcheco)
Technique: Acrylic on canvas, mixed media of spatula and impasto
Measurements: 90 × 60 cm
Year: 2026
Style: Contemporary abstraction / material expressionism

Root of Light builds an inner landscape where matter replaces traditional representation. From an atmosphere dominated by deep blues emerges an intense red trunk whose roots penetrate a fragmented and vibrant surface. A luminous opening in the upper area acts as a counterpoint, suggesting a search for an exit, transformation, or rebirth.

The generous application of acrylic with a spatula turns the surface into a physical territory. Blues, turquoises, violets, oranges and reds appear superimposed in multiple layers, making the perception of the work change with the incidence of light.
• Origin: Born July 28, 1968 in the Czech Republic, in the city of České Budějovice. 
• Early career: Even before formally studying Fine Arts, he was actively painting and selling his works. At 21 he was known in Germany, the Netherlands and other European countries. By 25, he had sold more than 1,000 works around the world. 
• Artistic evolution: At 40, he discarded commercial painting and immersed himself in a more authentic and profound artistic expression. He left his home and the life he knew to work on the street, approaching experiences of poverty, loneliness and passion. At 43, he began a new stylistic and creative phase. 
• Artist’s philosophy: For him, art is a space of absolute freedom—where he connects with the essence of things and the deepest feelings. Where the only valid time is that of the brush; to create or recreate life on a canvas, paper or sculpture is, for him, a sublime act. 

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Achievements, recognitions and exhibitions
• Awards:
• 2023: European Artist Award in Milan, Italy. 
• 2021: Appointed Coordinator of Art and Painting of the Czech Republic. 
• Exhibitions:
• Participated in a group exhibition in Berja (Andalusia, Spain) in 2023. 
• Residencies:
• Artistic residency in Garachico (Canary Islands, Spain) in 1997. 
• Representation and critiques:
• Since 2025, represented by 1819 Art Gallery in Madrid, Spain. 
• His work received critical reviews, among others by Antonio Sánchez, director and curator of 1819 Gallery, highlighting his collection as a “pictorial symphony between light, nature and essence,” with a technique that fuses abstraction and figuration, intense use of color and texture, deeply material. 

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Artistic style

His work is characterized by an approach that sits between abstraction and figuration, where:
• Thick, angular brushstrokes predominate, applied with mixed-media (impasto) techniques that generate a notable three-dimensional effect. 
• The color palette employs blues, greens and earth tones, often contrasted by intense reds and oranges, evoking both serenity and passion. 
• Texture is a key expressive element: layers of paint piled with energy, creating an enveloping and sensory atmosphere. 
• The composition is built from an asymmetrical harmony, challenging conventions and generating visual tension that invites continual exploration of the canvas. 
• In several works, the human figure emerges fused with the natural surroundings, as if part of the landscape itself, revealing a deep symbolic symbiotic connection with nature. 

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General interpretation
• An artist in constant transformation: He has traversed a path from commercial success to a more authentic and visceral expression, which led him to live and create even in extreme environments.
• Sensorial richness: His works seek to engage all the viewer’s senses: light, color, texture and emotion in an almost tactile experience.
• Spirituality and nature: The fusion of humanity and the natural environment, along with an expressive and emotionally charged technique, points to a deep search for spiritual connection.
Miroslav Špadrna | PainterCheco

Contemporary Artist — Czech Republic / Spain

Miroslav Špadrna, artistically known as Pintorcheco, is a Czech-born contemporary artist and painter, born in 1968 and currently based in Spain. His artistic practice unfolds at the intersection of abstraction and figuration, developing a distinctive visual language defined by chromatic intensity, materiality, movement and a profound spiritual dimension.

His paintings are characterized by a gestural, material and highly textured approach. Through palette-knife work, impasto and mixed media on canvas, Špadrna constructs surfaces of remarkable physical and visual density. Layers of paint, relief and traces of gesture transform matter itself into an essential part of each work’s meaning.

Colour occupies a central position within his artistic language. Deep blues, greens and earth tones interact with intense yellows, magentas and oranges. In series such as Portales Índigo (Indigo Portals), blue moves beyond its purely chromatic function to become a symbolic space associated with depth, silence, energy and passage towards an inner reality.

Špadrna’s work explores universal themes including inner light, transformation, memory, silence and freedom. Forms appear to emerge from and dissolve into the painted surface, evoking landscapes, architectural structures, human presences and imaginary territories without ever becoming completely defined.

This ambiguity is fundamental to his practice. Rather than presenting the viewer with a closed image or predetermined interpretation, Špadrna creates a visual territory in which personal perception and emotional experience become part of the artwork itself.

Throughout his career, Špadrna has developed an increasingly international presence. Recognition associated with his artistic trajectory includes distinctions received in Milan (2023) and Florence (2025), as well as his appointment as Coordinator of Art and Painting in the Czech Republic in 2021.

His work has also gained international visibility through specialised contemporary-art platforms and markets, contributing to a trajectory that connects his Central European origins with his current creative period in Spain.

Rather than simply representing visible reality, Miroslav Špadrna seeks to construct emotional spaces. Across his paintings, matter, light and colour become gateways to inner states where the recognisable and the unknown remain in constant tension.

Miroslav Špadrna — Pintorcheco
Matter · Light · Transformation · Freedom