Emil Filla
Encyclopedia
Emil Filla a Czech painter, was a leader of the Avant-Garde
in Prague
between World War I and World War II and was an early Cubist painter.
He was born in Chropyně
, Moravia
, and spent his childhood in Brno
, but later moved to Prague
. Beginning in 1903, he studied at the Akademie výtvarných umění (Prague Academy
), but he left the school in 1906. He was a member of the group Osma (The Eight) in 1907–1908, which had commonalities with the Fauves and also had direct ties to the German Expressionist group Die Brücke
. Important works by Filla from this period include Reader of Dostoevsky (1907) and Chess Players (1908). In 1909, he became a member of the Mánes Union of Fine Arts
. Beginning in 1910 he painted primarily in a Cubist style, strongly influenced by Picasso and Braque, and produced works such as Salome (1911) and Bathers (1912). He also began to paint many still lifes around that time. In 1911 he edited several issues of Volné směry, promoting Cubism and publishing reproductions of works by Picasso. After both readers and the leaders of Mánes reacted negatively, he and others withdrew from Mánes and founded Skupina výtvarných umělců (the Group of Visual Artists), which was a Cubist-oriented group. Circa 1913, he and Otto Gutfreund
, produced some of the earliest Cubist sculpture
made anywhere. Before World War I
he moved to Paris
, but left for Holland when war broke out. He returned to Prague after the war. During the 1920s, he further developed his version of Synthetic Cubism and rejoined Mánes. Like many Czech modernists, he was active in design as well as in painting; in 1925 he designed paintings on glass for the Czechoslovak Pavilion at the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes
in Paris. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, Surrealist influence also began to show in his painting and sculpture, and he was a participant in Poesie 1932, an international exhibition in Prague that introduced Surrealism to the Czech public. He did not, however, become a Surrealist. On the first day of World War II
he was arrested by the gestapo
together with painter Josef Čapek
and others and was subsequently imprisoned in German
concentration camps Dachau and Buchenwald
. However, he survived, returned home and began to teach at the Vysoká škola uměleckoprůmyslová v Praze (VŠUP--Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague). In 1945, he was the first artist to be given a post-war exhibition at Mánes. After the war, he exhibited mainly works from the cycle Boje a zápasy (Fights and Struggles), and later mainly produced landscapes. During his lifetime he was active as a painter, sculptor, collector, theoretician, editor, organizer, and diplomat. He died in Prague and is buried in Střešovice
in greater Prague.
He idolized Vincent van Gogh
, Pierre Bonnard
and Edvard Munch
as well as Picasso and Braque.
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
between World War I and World War II and was an early Cubist painter.
He was born in Chropyně
Chropyne
Chropyně is a town in the Zlín Region, Czech Republic.-External links:*...
, Moravia
Moravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
, and spent his childhood in Brno
Brno
Brno by population and area is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, the largest Moravian city, and the historical capital city of the Margraviate of Moravia. Brno is the administrative centre of the South Moravian Region where it forms a separate district Brno-City District...
, but later moved to Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
. Beginning in 1903, he studied at the Akademie výtvarných umění (Prague Academy
Academy of Fine Arts in Prague
The Academy of Fine Arts, Prague was founded in 1799 and is the Czech Republic's oldest art college. The school offers twelve Master's degree programs and one Doctoral program.-History:...
), but he left the school in 1906. He was a member of the group Osma (The Eight) in 1907–1908, which had commonalities with the Fauves and also had direct ties to the German Expressionist group Die Brücke
Die Brücke
Die Brücke was a group of German expressionist artists formed in Dresden in 1905, after which the Brücke Museum in Berlin was named. Founding members were Fritz Bleyl, Erich Heckel, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner and Karl Schmidt-Rottluff. Later members were Emil Nolde, Max Pechstein and Otto Mueller...
. Important works by Filla from this period include Reader of Dostoevsky (1907) and Chess Players (1908). In 1909, he became a member of the Mánes Union of Fine Arts
Mánes Union of Fine Arts
The Manes Association of Fine Artists was an artists' association and exhibition society founded in 1887 in Prague and named after the painter Josef Mánes....
. Beginning in 1910 he painted primarily in a Cubist style, strongly influenced by Picasso and Braque, and produced works such as Salome (1911) and Bathers (1912). He also began to paint many still lifes around that time. In 1911 he edited several issues of Volné směry, promoting Cubism and publishing reproductions of works by Picasso. After both readers and the leaders of Mánes reacted negatively, he and others withdrew from Mánes and founded Skupina výtvarných umělců (the Group of Visual Artists), which was a Cubist-oriented group. Circa 1913, he and Otto Gutfreund
Otto Gutfreund
Otto Gutfreund was a Czech-Czechoslovak cubist sculptor. He is acknowledged by the art historian Douglas Cooper to be the author of the first cubist sculpture: Anxiety , created in 1911 and exhibited in Paris in 1912.- Life :...
, produced some of the earliest Cubist sculpture
Cubist sculpture
Cubist sculpture is a style developed in parallel with cubist painting, centered in Paris, beginning around 1909 and evolving through the early 1920s.The style is most closely associated with the formal experiments of Georges Braque and Pablo Picasso...
made anywhere. Before World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
he moved to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, but left for Holland when war broke out. He returned to Prague after the war. During the 1920s, he further developed his version of Synthetic Cubism and rejoined Mánes. Like many Czech modernists, he was active in design as well as in painting; in 1925 he designed paintings on glass for the Czechoslovak Pavilion at the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes
Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes
The International Exposition of Modern Industrial and Decorative Arts was a World's fair held in Paris, France, from April to October 1925. The term "Art Deco" was derived by shortening the words Arts Décoratifs, in the title of this exposition, but not until the late 1960s by British art critic...
in Paris. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, Surrealist influence also began to show in his painting and sculpture, and he was a participant in Poesie 1932, an international exhibition in Prague that introduced Surrealism to the Czech public. He did not, however, become a Surrealist. On the first day of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he was arrested by the gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
together with painter Josef Čapek
Josef Capek
Josef Čapek was a Czech artist who was best known as a painter, but who was also noted as a writer and a poet. He invented the word robot, which was introduced into literature by his brother, Karel Čapek.- Biography :...
and others and was subsequently imprisoned in German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
concentration camps Dachau and Buchenwald
Buchenwald concentration camp
Buchenwald concentration camp was a German Nazi concentration camp established on the Ettersberg near Weimar, Germany, in July 1937, one of the first and the largest of the concentration camps on German soil.Camp prisoners from all over Europe and Russia—Jews, non-Jewish Poles and Slovenes,...
. However, he survived, returned home and began to teach at the Vysoká škola uměleckoprůmyslová v Praze (VŠUP--Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague). In 1945, he was the first artist to be given a post-war exhibition at Mánes. After the war, he exhibited mainly works from the cycle Boje a zápasy (Fights and Struggles), and later mainly produced landscapes. During his lifetime he was active as a painter, sculptor, collector, theoretician, editor, organizer, and diplomat. He died in Prague and is buried in Střešovice
Strešovice
Střešovice is a neighborhood of green, quiet, village-like streets in the west of Prague. It is located in the Prague 6 district. Střešovice is often called the "local Beverly Hills" because it is home to some famous residents, including former President Václav Havel. The neighborhood is a...
in greater Prague.
He idolized Vincent van Gogh
Vincent van Gogh
Vincent Willem van Gogh , and used Brabant dialect in his writing; it is therefore likely that he himself pronounced his name with a Brabant accent: , with a voiced V and palatalized G and gh. In France, where much of his work was produced, it is...
, Pierre Bonnard
Pierre Bonnard
Pierre Bonnard was a French painter and printmaker, as well as a founding member of Les Nabis.-Biography:...
and Edvard Munch
Edvard Munch
Edvard Munch was a Norwegian Symbolist painter, printmaker and an important forerunner of expressionist art. His best-known composition, The Scream, is part of a series The Frieze of Life, in which Munch explored the themes of love, fear, death, melancholia, and anxiety.- Childhood :Edvard Munch...
as well as Picasso and Braque.