Lot 133

Pavel Nešleha (1937 - 2003) UNTITLED

This painting, remarkable for its subject and the way in which it is depicted, represents the work of an important figure on the Czech art scene in the second half of the 20th century, Pavel Nešleha. His extensive oeuvre covering an extensive range of themes indicate the artist’s emotional and existential thoughts, setting the groundwork for his Surrealist and Expressionist stances. In his early work Nešleha applied the expressive power of colored structures and untraditional techniques, achieving a powerful, raw experience, seemingly able to visualize the energy of material. This unique and mysterious painting affects the human psyche, leading it to meditative contemplations.

Pavel Nešleha represents the Sixties generation and Czech nonconformist, avant-gardist modern art. After studying at the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague under Professor Alois Fišárek, he associated with the avant-garde oriented artists of the studio actions Confrontation I and II, became acquainted with printmaker Vladimír Boudník, and forged a friendship with art theorists František Šmejkal and Jan Kříž. In 1966 he met art theorist Jindřich Chalupecký. In the spring of 1968 received a French government scholarship for a residence in Paris, and he undertook a number of study trips. He was offered a position as a drawing instructor at the Kunstakademie in Kassel in 1970, but the Czechoslovak authorities refused to issue permission for him to leave the country. During the Normalization period he was closely associated with Jindřich Chalupecký and he co-founded the Zaostalí (Retards) art group (1987). In 1990 he received a creative grant from the Pollock–Krasner Foundation, and starting that same year he headed the painting studio at the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design (until 2001; appointed professor in 1991). In 1995 he became a member of the Mánes Union of Fine Artists. He has received a number of awards for his prints and drawings. The work is in the artist’s original housing. Consulted with PhDr. Mahulena Nešlehová.