4:30 p.m.– 6 p.m

Lecture by Gabriela Pelikánová. Only in Czech.

Otto Gutfreund (1889–1927) made a significant contribution to the history of Czech and European sculpture. His first sculpture, created in the spirit of Cubo-Expressionism, is Anxiety (1911–1912).

Gutfreund’s Cubism reached its peak in 1913–1914 during an analytical phase of his career inspired by the work of Pablo Picasso. He planned to continue working in this vein and settle permanently in France. However, World War I broke out, and Gutfreund became an active participant in the conflict as a member of the French Foreign Legion.

He did not return home until 1919, after spending years in an internment camp. He continued in his artistic endeavours even while interned there, though he primarily worked in the medium of wood due to a lack of other options. Three sculptures from this period have survived, and they are considered the pinnacle of Gutfreund’s Cubist period.

Gutfreund’s artistic style underwent a radical change when he returned to his native Czechoslovakia, shifting towards a universally accessible form of social realism. In the 1920s he created a number of sculptural works in public spaces, including a statue of President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk. It remains a matter of speculation where Gutfreund’s work might have headed had he not drowned by unfortunate accident in the Vltava River in 1927.

Booking in advance necessary

free of charge