Josef Čapek (; 23 March 1887 – April 1945) was a Czech artist who was best known as a painter, but who was also noted as a writer and a poet. He invented the word "

robot A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may be ...

", which was introduced into literature by his brother,

Karel Čapek Karel Čapek (; 9 January 1890 – 25 December 1938) was a Czech writer, playwright and critic. He has become best known for his science fiction, including his novel '' War with the Newts'' (1936) and play '' R.U.R.'' (''Rossum's Universal ...

Life

Čapek was born in

Hronov Hronov () is a town in Náchod District in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 6,000 inhabitants. It is known as the birthplace of writer Alois Jirásek. Administrative parts Villages of Malá Čermná, Rokytník, Ve ...

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

(

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

, later

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

, now the Czech Republic) in 1887. First a painter of the Cubist school, he later developed his own playful, minimalist style. He collaborated with his brother Karel on a number of plays and short stories; on his own, he wrote the

utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imaginary community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book '' Utopia'', describing a fictional island soc ...

n play ''Land of Many Names'' and several novels, as well as critical essays in which he argued for the art of the unconscious, of children, and of 'savages'. He was named by his brother as the true inventor of the term ''

''. As a

cartoonist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary and g ...

, he worked for ''

Lidové Noviny ''Lidové noviny'' (''People's News'', or ''The People's Newspaper'', ) is a daily newspaper published in Prague, the Czech Republic. It is the oldest Czech daily still in print, and a newspaper of record.Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

. Due to his critical attitude towards

national socialism Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Naz ...

and

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and the ...

, he was arrested after the

German invasion of Czechoslovakia German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law ** ...

in 1939. He wrote ''Poems from a Concentration Camp'' in the

Bergen-Belsen concentration camp Bergen-Belsen , or Belsen, was a Nazi concentration camp in what is today Lower Saxony in northern Germany, southwest of the town of Bergen near Celle. Originally established as a prisoner of war camp, in 1943, parts of it became a concentra ...

, where he died in 1945. In June 1945 Rudolf Margolius, accompanied by Čapek's wife Jarmila Čapková, went to

Bergen-Belsen Bergen-Belsen , or Belsen, was a Nazi concentration camp in what is today Lower Saxony in northern Germany, southwest of the town of Bergen near Celle. Originally established as a prisoner of war camp, in 1943, parts of it became a concentrati ...

to search for him. His remains were never found. In 1948 the court officially set the date of his death as 30 April 1947. His illustrated stories ''Povídání o Pejskovi a Kočičce'' (English translation as ''The Adventures of Puss and Pup'') are considered classics of Czech children's literature.

Selected literary works

*''Lelio'', 1917 *''Ze života hmyzu'' ('' Pictures from the Insects' Life''), 1921 – with Karel Čapek *''Povídání o pejskovi a kočičce'' (''The Adventures of Puss and Pup''), 1929 *''Stín kapradiny'', 1930, novel *''Kulhavý poutník'', essays, 1936 *''Land of Many Names'' *''Básně z koncentračního tabora'' (''Poems from a Concentration Camp''), published posthumously 1946 *''Adam Stvořitel'' (''Adam the Creator'') – with

*''Dášeňka, čili život štěněte'' (''Dashenka, consequently the life of a Puppy'') – with

, illustrated by Josef

Gallery

Image:Josef Čapek Letadlo.jpg, ''Letadlo'' (''Aeroplane'') Image:Josef Čapek, Zpívající děvčata.jpg, ''Zpívající děvčata'' (''Singing girls'') Image:Josef Čapek - Harmonikář (1913).jpg, ''Harmonikář'' (''Harmonist'') Image:Josef Čapek - Krajina v dešti (1928).jpg, ''Krajina v dešti'' (''Landscape in the rain'') Image:Josef Čapek - Kluci s kozou (1936).jpg, ''Kluci s kozou'' (''Guys with a goat'') Image:Josef Čapek - Piják (1913).jpg, ''Piják'' (''Blotter'') Image:Josef Čapek - Matka s dětmi.JPG, ''Matka s dětmi'' (''Mother with children'') Image:Josef Čapek, Hra.jpg, ''Hra'' (''Game'') Image:AfricanKingCapek.jpg, ''African King'' Image:Josef Čapek Selfportrait.jpg, ''Autoportrét'' (''Self-portrait'')

Literature

Ivan Margolius Ivan Margolius (born 27 February 1947) is an author, architect and propagator of Czech culture and technology. Life Margolius was born in Prague, son of JUDr Rudolf Margolius, Deputy Minister for Foreign Trade, and Heda Margolius Kovály, Czec ...

, 'The Robot of Prague', Newsletter, The Friends of Czech Heritage no. 17, Autumn 2017, pp. 3 – 6. https://czechfriends.net/images/RobotsMargoliusJul2017.pdf * Marie Šulcová. Čapci, Ladění pro dvě struny, Poločas nadějí, Brána věčnosti, Praha: Melantrich 1993-98 * Marie Šulcová. Prodloužený čas Josefa Čapka, Praha: Paseka 2000

References

External links