Professor Michal Gabriel

"It basically came out of the selection from The Confrontations. As far as I remember, the selection of The Stubborn members was quite spontaneous. I didn't even know how it happened. I learned it all in hindsight. The initiators were Jiří David and Stanislav Diviš, who decided that we had to continue. They approached me with the idea that it would be good to start an artistic group of people who would be at the core of The Confrontations. I understood it to be both an artistic venture and a bit political. We were supposed to actually come together and disrupt the system a little bit, especially in the field of visual arts. To come out with an opinion that would be stronger if we were united as a group."

"The Confrontations definitely had an impact on the public, but it was due to the hunger for some art and free expression. It was amazing for us because we organized everything ourselves, no one helped us and we truly absorbed the new wave that was happening in the arts and that was going on in Europe at that time. All mixed together with the energy that we were doing it with in such an uncontrolled way, it was really powerful. We were meeting, we were putting shows together by feeling. Jiří David and Stanislav Diviš had quite a big role there, contacting and selecting artists. The selection of the works themselves took place more on the spot. More or less everything was exhibited. The walls were covered with paintings, without any proper installation or order."