Fenomeander

The exhibition will feature living Czech artists who are illustrating either their own books or those of other authors. Even though these artists are primarily defined by fine art, they are also capable of creating illustrations to which both today’s youngest readers and their parents can relate. All exhibiting artists are work for the Meander children’s publishing house, which is celebrating a quarter-century of existence during which it has published more than 300 books.

The combination of literature and art offers a unique way to address the general public. This fact had already been recognized by French gallery owner and defender of cubism Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler (1884–1979), who a hundred years ago came up with the Beax Livres project, in which he wanted to offer the general public beautiful books at affordable prices, with illustrations by artists of the day whose paintings few could afford. A book illustration is something powerful that makes an impression on us and creates our comprehensive awareness of the book. But what sort of artist is really behind the illustrations in children’s books? And how does inspiration that artists draw from various sources including reading manifest itself in their works, in which a wild fantasy world can once again develop? In paintings and installations by several artists we once again find ourselves in a landscape of a child’s imagination, where reading and play are very closely related. Only later does the ability to discern made-up stories or dreamscapes and everyday reality develop. It is literature and art that allow us to combine these worlds.