Josef Koudelka Christened an Exceptional Book: Returns. The Eponymous Exhibition Reveals the History
The exhibition entitled Koudelka: Returns as a bonus to the publication of the book and moreover to the eightieth birthday of the author
The epic luxury publication was released on the occasion of the extensive retrospective eponymous exhibition, Koudelka: Returns, taking place to 23. 9. 2018 at the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague. You have a unique opportunity to view the exhibition, which is tied to the occasion of eightieth birthday anniversary of the author, as a leading figure of the current world photography. Moreover, the Museum of Decorative Arts is the only one in the world where the extensive work of the world-renowned photographer is to be placed.
Exceptional personality. Josef Koudelka was able to capture what is uncapturable!
The author is known mainly thanks to his photographs from the time of occupation of Czechoslovakia by the Soviet Army. The photographs got to the United States and then flew round the world; at that time they were not published under the author's name. His success was inevitable. Koudelka at that time captured the misery of our nation which was then for the next twenty years sentenced to ´normalisation´ and day to day survival.
What does the book conceal? Three hundred and fifty photos.
The photographs are definitely luxury treasures. They represent a cross-section of his life work. In addition to Koudelka´s photos the book boasts also a large documentation material and original texts of six authors: Stuart Alexander, Josef Chuchma, Jan Mlčoch, Josef Moucha, Tomáš Pospěch and Irena Šorfová as well as original text by Anna Fárová from 1967. The publishing of the book was undertaken by the Museum of Decorative Arts and the publishing house KANT.
The book consists of seven chronologically-organised chapters in accordance with the individual thematic cycles. The first cycle characterises the "Beginnings", then there are "Experiments", which are particularly important for the understanding of the author's originality of creation, the topic of "Gypsies", "Theatre", "Invasion of 68", "Exiles”. The last part consists of the monumental "Panorama", large-format photos which represent the three decades of work of mapping of the impact of man on the current landscape.
"The author during his life always went his way, not succumbing to external influences or artistic trends," says the exhibition curator, Irena Šorfová, of Josef Koudelka.
You can visit the exhibition at the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague until 23. 9. 2018.
