Exoticisms in 20th-century Art in Bohemia and Moravia

12.12.2007 - 17.2.2008

19 - 21 Husova St., Prague 1 – Old Town

The idea of staging an exhibition of 20th-century art inspired by a love of the exotic was first formed at the CMFA before the mid-1990s. It was inspired by the then current trend in art that was connected with Postmodernist returns to the past, mythology and exotic themes though also the inspiration of traditional folk culture.

These returns created the need to reflect on the entire multilayered stream that played an important role in the history of 20th-century Czech art. The inspiration of exotica, whether from the Far East, the Near East, Africa, Russia, Australia and Oceania, corresponded in the Czech historical context with the need to open up to the world from which these animating innovations arrived.

During the 20th century, exoticisms took many different forms that were co-determined by their social and cultural-historical background. They appeared in waves at specific periods. At the turn of the 20th century, during the era of Art Nouveau and Symbolism, they displayed a number of features characteristic of the creation of an artistic style and lifestyle. They influenced the fields of architecture and both fine and applied art, making an impact on life in general including the way people dressed. Although one cannot talk of such complex phenomena in later stages of development, it is possible to trace a series of common traits in them that allow us to think about strong individual expressions and major artistic trends.

On the basis of examples from the fields of fine art, applied art and architecture, the exhibition and accompanying catalogue trace the phenomenon of exoticisms from the turn of the 20th century through the periods of Expressionism and Cubism, the inter-war avant-garde, post-war Modernism, up to the emergence of Postmodernism and its present-day echoes.

The exhibition presents the work of artists and architects such as Jan Letzel, Dušan Jurkovič, Emil Orlik, Alfons Mucha, Arnošt Hofbauer, František Bílek, Vojtěch Preissig, František Kupka, Josef Váchal, Otakar Nejedlý, Jaroslav Hněvkovský, Jaroslav Horejc, Antonin Raymond, Josef Čapek, Pavel Janák, Josef Gočár, Otto Gutfreund, Vlastislav Hofman, Minka Podhajská, Toyen, Alén Diviš, František Tichý, Jan Křížek, Zdeněk Plesník, Zdeněk Sklenář, Zdenek Seydl, Ida Vaculková, Stanislav Libenský, Robert Piesen, Jan Šafránek, Michal Gabriel, Jaroslav Róna, Kryštof Trubáček, Jan Hísek, Michal Cihlář, Barbora Šlapetová, Otto Placht and Martin Roubík.

The exhibition also features the screening of a documentary film about the travels of Jiří Hanzelka and Miroslav Zikmund.

Exhibition conception:

• Alena Křížová - applied art
• Ladislava Horňáková - architecture
• Alena Potůčková - fine art

This exhibition was being shown again:

• Gallery of Fine Art, Hodonín 5.3.2008 – 27.4.2008
• East Bohemian Gallery, Pardubice 15.5.2008 – 20.7.2008
• Gallery of Fine Art, Cheb 18.9.2008 – 30.11.2008