Karel Špillar (21 November 1871 – 7 April 1939) was a Czech painter and graphic artist.

Biography

Karel Špillar was born on 21 November 1871 in

Plzeň Plzeň (), also known in English and German as Pilsen (), is a city in the Czech Republic. It is the Statutory city (Czech Republic), fourth most populous city in the Czech Republic with about 188,000 inhabitants. It is located about west of P ...

. His father, Antonín, was a financial officer for the city of Plzeň. His brothers,

Jaroslav Jaroslav (also written as Yaroslav or Jarosław in other Slavic languages) is a Czech and Slovak first name, pagan in origin. Its feminine form is Jaroslava. There are several possible origins of the name Jaroslav. It is very likely that origi ...

and Rudolf, also became painters. After completing his primary education, he became a student at the School of Applied Arts. From 1885 to 1893, he studied decorative painting with

František Ženíšek František Ženíšek (25 May 1849 – 15 November 1916) was a Czech painter. He was part of the "" (Generation of the National Theater), a large group of artists with nationalistic sympathies. Early life Ženíšek was born in Prague into a fa ...

, as did Jaroslav. Shortly after graduating, he received his first commission; an

altarpiece An altarpiece is a painting or sculpture, including relief, of religious subject matter made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting or sculpture, ...

for a chapel in

Ostrava Ostrava (; ; ) is a city in the north-east of the Czech Republic and the capital of the Moravian-Silesian Region. It has about 283,000 inhabitants. It lies from the border with Poland, at the confluences of four rivers: Oder, Opava (river), Opa ...

. The following years were mostly devoted to small orders, but he returned to large decorative paintings in 1899, when he collaborated with

Jan Preisler Jan Preisler (17 February 1872, in Králův Dvůr – 27 April 1918, in Prague) was a Czech painter and art professor. Life Jan Preisler’s family worked in the local iron foundry and he attended the nearby primary schools. From an early age ...

on panels for the pavilion of the Czech Chamber of Commerce at the upcoming Exposition Universelle in Paris. He worked with Preisler again, at the Central Hotel in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

, then with Jaroslav in the meeting hall at the Italian Court in

Kutná Hora Kutná Hora (; ) is a town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 22,000 inhabitants. The history of Kutná Hora is linked to silver mining, which made it a rich and rapidly developing town. The centre of Kutná Hora, i ...

(1901). During this time, he became an active member of the

Mánes Union of Fine Arts The Mánes Association of Fine Artists ( or ''S.V.U.''; commonly abbreviated as ''Manes'') was an artists' association and exhibition society founded in 1887 in Prague and named after painter Josef Mánes. The Manes was significant for its in ...

. In 1902, he organized an exhibition for them in Paris and designed the posters.Marta Sylvestrová: "Ohlasy Vídně v plakátové tvorbě v Čechách" (Responses to Vienna in poster production in the Czech Republic). In, Miroslav Ambrož, (ed.): ''Vídeňská secese a moderna 1900-1925''. MG Brno, 2005, pp. 220-236 He settled in Paris for a time, and made several trips to

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

. There, he was influenced by the works of

Puvis de Chavannes Pierre Puvis de Chavannes (; 14 December 1824 – 24 October 1898) was a French painter known for his mural painting, who came to be known as "the painter for France". He became the co-founder and president of the Société Nationale des Beaux-A ...

, which was reflected in his entry at a competition to design a new curtain for the

Vinohrady Theatre Vinohrady Theatre () is a theatre in Vinohrady, Prague. Construction began on February 27, 1905. It served as the Theatre of the Czechoslovak Army from autumn 1950 to January 1966. It contains a curtain painted by Vladimír Županský depicting ...

in 1905. His design came in at second place.Jiří Valenta (ed.): ''Malované opony divadel českých zemí'' (Painted curtains of theaters of the Czech lands), NIPOS, Praha 2010 He returned home in 1908, prompted by the death of his father and Jaroslav's worsening illness. In 1909, he created one of his most prominent works, "Tribute to Prague", on the façade of the

Municipal House Municipal House () is a civic building that houses Smetana Hall, a celebrated concert venue, in Prague, Czech Republic. It is located on Náměstí Republiky next to the Powder Gate in the centre of the city. History The Royal Court palace u ...

. After 1913, he worked at the School of Applied Arts as a teacher of nude drawing. In 1925, he was appointed a Professor. After Jaroslav's death in 1917, he spent his holidays at his brother's villa in Pec, sketching landscapes. He died on 7 April 1939 in Prague, after a long illness. He was interred at the

Vinohrady Cemetery Vinohrady Cemetery () is a large cemetery in Vinohrady in Prague 10 which contains Strašnice Crematorium. It is the second largest cemetery in Prague and is registered in the state list of cultural monuments. The remains of two Czech presidents ...

. His works were largely forgotten from 1948 to 1980, when a retrospective was held and interest in him was renewed.

Selected paintings

Spillar-Rest.jpg, At Rest Spillar-Beach.jpg, On the Beach Spillar-Judgement.jpg, The

Judgement of Paris The Judgement of Paris is a story from Greek mythology, which was one of the events that led up to the Trojan War, and in later versions to the foundation of Rome. Eris, the goddess of discord, was not invited to the wedding of Peleus and Th ...

Spillar-Dressing.jpg, Dressing Up

References

External links

More works by Špillar
@ ArtNet
Works by and about Špillar
@ the

National Library of the Czech Republic The National Library of the Czech Republic () is the central library of the Czech Republic. It is directed by the Ministry of Culture (Czech Republic), Ministry of Culture. The library's main building is located in the historical Clementinum buil ...

Entry on Karel Špillar
@ AbART {{DEFAULTSORT:Spillar, Karel 1871 births 1939 deaths Czech painters Decorative arts Art Nouveau Czech poster artists Artists from Plzeň Painters from Austria-Hungary Czechoslovak painters

Biography

Selected paintings

References

Further reading

External links