Lot 162

Bohuslav Reynek (1892 - 1971) THREE BIRCHES IN SNOW

Bohuslav Reynek was a Czech graphic artist, poet and translator whose prints can be viewed as a visual transcription of the language of poetry. His work was very well received in France, where he exhibited in 1927–1929. In the 1930s he gradually shifted away from charcoal and pastel drawings and started to use the techniques of drypoint and etching. His prints from the 1930s often show Petrkov, the village where he was born, and the nature that he loved and inspired him. After 1939 the landscape motifs are replaced with biblical subjects, especially scenes of the crucifixion, pietàs and the denial of Peter. The most important part of Reynek's oeuvre of prints and poetry was created in the 1950s and 60s. Petrkov became a "pilgrimage site", where young artists and dissidents found safe haven.