An exhibition to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the birth and the 330th anniversary of the death of Wenceslaus Hollar.

October 12, 2007 – January 13, 2008

Exhibition organised by the National Gallery in Prague – Collection of Prints and Drawings, Collection of Old Masters
in the Kinský Palace
Staroměstské nám. 12, Prague 1

The exhibition is held under the auspices of Her Excellency Linda Duffield, Ambassador of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Author and curator of the exhibition: Alena Volrábová

With the assistance of: Michaela Brixová, Lubomír Konečný, Martin Kovář, Olga Kotková, Anja Ševčík, Vít Vlnas, Anthony Griffiths, Michael Bath, Simon Turner

The National Gallery would like to thank the following institutions for their loans of artwork by Wenceslaus Hollar:
Kupferstichkabinett, Berlin
The John Rylands University Library, Manchester
The British Museum, London
 
Chief partner of the National Gallery: HVB Bank
Patron of the National Gallery: Synot Lotto a.s
Chief media partner of the National Gallery: Hospodářské noviny
Media partners of the exhibition: Art & Antiques, Classic FM, ČRo 3 - Vltava, Týden, Xantypa, Radio 1, Umění 

Wenceslaus Hollar numbers among the few Czech artists of the past to enjoy the admiration of a wide range of international art connoisseurs and experts. For the Czech viewer, his name has almost become a synonym for the graphic arts in general. The National Gallery in Prague holds one of the largest and most representative collections of his work in the world, which was last exhibited on a major scale in 1983, a full twenty-four years ago.

Wenceslaus Hollar was born in 1607 in Prague, the city that he left at the age of twenty for Germany. In 1636, he met his future patron, Thomas Howard, Earl of Arundel, whom he followed to England; with the exception of the period 1644–1652, spent in Antwerp, he remained in England up until his death in 1677. During his long artistic career, Hollar created an amazingly extensive body of work containing many drawings, of which around 500 are known to have survived, and roughly 2700 prints, generally rendered with the technique of the etching, making him one of the most prolific artists of his era. He achieved particular renown with his natural and urban landscapes, costume themes, or cycles of small items of natural-historical interest. He also created many portraits of leading personalities of his age, and depicted various historical events of notable significance. Popularity came to Hollar primarily in England, which became his second homeland, popularity won in large part through his famed scenes of London. And yet he never forgot the land of his birth: not only did he throughout his life frequently sign his work ‘Wenceslaus Hollar Bohemus,’ but he also created several cityscapes of Prague including several wide-angle panoramas from the slopes of Petřín Hill. Of particular interest as well is Hollar’s later phase, in which he produced many powerful landscape scenes and intriguing book illustrations. A selection of Hollar’s best prints and drawings is exhibited from each of his creative periods, meaning that visitors will be treated to his most famous artworks as well as many a lesser-known piece. In particular, the selection has greatly increased the collection of his book illustrations.

Hollar depicted events in the history of a Europe then caught between remarkable cultural flowering on one side, and the tragic fighting of the Thirty Years’ War on the other. Truly a Europe ‘between life and desolation’. As for the artistic currents of the 17th century, Wenceslaus Hollar nonetheless retained his personal style, even though the artistic environments in which he worked had an impact on him in various ways. First was Prague, where he knew the culmination and gradual decline of the cultural life of the court of Emperor Rudolf II. Then, in Germany, England and Antwerp, he lived in the company of scholars and artists. As a result, we have supplemented the exhibit with examples of the work of other painters and print-makers who influenced Hollar or are known to have met personally with him.

In addition, the exhibition is conceived with an eye to the stylistic development of Hollar’s urban scenes, particularly his views of Prague, moving from an informative stylised overview to a true urban landscape in the modern sense, best represented by Hollar’s own panoramas. Perhaps even more intriguing for the Czech viewer will be his sketchbook from the John Rylands University Library in Manchester, filled with Hollar’s drawings from the early 17th century and also containing the earliest known view of Prague in his oeuvre.

All of the prints on display, and the greater part of the drawings, are from the Hollareum collection of the National Gallery in Prague, while several drawings are currently borrowed from institutions abroad, such as the previously mentioned John Rylands University Library in Manchester, the Kupferstichkabinett in Berlin and the British Museum in London.
The catalogue that has been prepared for the exhibition is the most complete catalogue of Hollar’s oeuvre published up until now in the Czech Republic. In addition to providing a representative list of the best works published on the exiled artist, it contains several introductory studies from leading Czech and British historians and art historians.

Alena Volrábová 

Catalogue Wenceslaus Hollar (1607–1677) and Europe between Life and Desolation:
Czech version 550 CZK, English version 600 CZK
368 pages

Entrance to the exhibition ‘Wenceslaus Hollar (1607–1677) and Europe between Life and Desolation’
2nd floor of the Kinský Palace
Regular admission 100 CZK, reduced 50 CZK, family admission 150 CZK

Note:
During the entire period of duration for the exhibit ‘Wenceslaus Hollar (1607–1677) and Europe between Life and Desolation’ entrance to the permanent exhibitions ‘The Landscape in Czech Art in the 17th-19th centuries (1st floor of the Kinský Palace).
From October 12, 2007 to January 13, 2008 entrance fees for the permanent collection in the 1st floor of the Kinský Palace
Regular admission 50 CZK, reduced 30 CZK, family ticket 50 CZK

Opening hours
Daily except Mondays from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

www.ngprague.cz

NG – Kinský Palace
Staroměstské nám. 12, Prague 1
Public transport access: metro A – Staroměstská, metro B – Můstek

Contact for journalists:
Petra Jungwirthová, Head, Public Relations Department of the NG in Prague, tel.: 222 32 14 59, mob.: 606 166 513 e-mail: jungwirthova@ngprague.cz

www.ngprague.cz