Martin Velíšek (born 21 October 1963 in

Duchcov Duchcov (; ) is a town in Teplice District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 8,700 inhabitants. Duchcov is known for the Duchcov Castle. The historic town centre with the castle complex is well preserved and is pro ...

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

) is a

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...

artist whose work spans the media of

glass Glass is an amorphous (non-crystalline solid, non-crystalline) solid. Because it is often transparency and translucency, transparent and chemically inert, glass has found widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in window pane ...

and

canvas Canvas is an extremely durable Plain weave, plain-woven Cloth, fabric used for making sails, tents, Tent#Marquees and larger tents, marquees, backpacks, Shelter (building), shelters, as a Support (art), support for oil painting and for other ite ...

animated film Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby still images are manipulated to create moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Animati ...

, album covers, book covers, restaurant menus, napkin packaging, TV packaging,

photography Photography is the visual arts, art, application, and practice of creating images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is empl ...

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

, and

interiors ''Interiors'' is a 1978 American drama film written and directed by Woody Allen. It stars Kristin Griffith, Mary Beth Hurt, Richard Jordan, Diane Keaton, E. G. Marshall, Geraldine Page, Maureen Stapleton, and Sam Waterston. Allen's first ...

. Academically, Velíšek's work is commonly referred as

grotesque Since at least the 18th century (in French and German, as well as English), grotesque has come to be used as a general adjective for the strange, mysterious, magnificent, fantastic, hideous, ugly, incongruous, unpleasant, or disgusting, and thus ...

, gothic, or absurdist. Velíšek himself avows a self-conceived school of "Parealism", and indeed the peculiarity of his artistic style eludes easy definition.

Life and work

Martin Velíšek graduated from the School of Industrial Art in

Kamenický Šenov Kamenický Šenov () is a town in Česká Lípa District in the Liberec Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 3,800 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument zone ...

in 1983 and then from the glass-working department of the College of Industrial Art, Prague in 1989. While his exhibitions drew attention even in communist-era Czechoslovakia, it was his association with the popular

avant-punk Avant-punk is a punk music style characterized by "screeching experimentation", and a term by which critics used to describe the wave of American punk bands from the 1970s. It originated with the New York–based rock band the Velvet Undergroun ...

band

Už Jsme Doma Už jsme doma (, ) are a Czech progressive rock band from Prague who originally formed in Teplice in 1985.The Grandmother ''The Grandmother'' () is a novella written by Czech writer Božena Němcová in 1853–1854 and first published in 1855. It is her most popular work and is regarded as a classic piece of Czech literature. This most frequently read book of the ...

)'' by

Božena Němcová Božena Němcová () (4 February 1820 in Vienna – 21 January 1862 in Prague) was a Czech writer of the final phase of the ''Czech National Revival'' movement. Her image is featured on the 500 CZK denomination of the Česká koruna. Biography ...

, his contribution to Aurel Klimt‘s animated film version of

Jan Werich Jan Werich (; 6 February 1905 – 31 October 1980) was a Czech actor, playwright and writer. Early life Between 1916 and 1924, Werich attended "reálné gymnasium" (equivalent to high school) in Křemencova Street in Prague (where his future b ...

’s '' Fimfárum'', and his embellishment of

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 ...

Žižkov Žižkov ( or ''Zizkow'', between 1939 and 1945 ''Veitsberg'') is a cadastral district of Prague, Czech Republic. Most of Žižkov lies in the municipal and administrative district of Prague 3, except for very small parts which are in Pra ...

’s famed tavern “At the Shot Out Eye” (''U vystřelenýho oka''), where his conceptions adorn everything from the tables to the head-rests he invented for the urinals.

Interpretation

A dominant theme in Velíšek's work is man, or better put, the body of man, generally closed in a space in his nakedness or before a horizon, and treated with a specific kind of crooked, or comical, baseness, that creates a distinctly black sense of humour. The pictures always have a clear composition which, along with abundant use of writing, leads to a sort of

Gothicism Gothicism or Gothism ( ; ) was an ethno-cultural ideology and cultural movement in Sweden, which took honor in being a Swede, for being purportedly related to the Goths. This was a result of a resolute decades long effort from Swedish writers, ...

applied with equal measure to religion or pub scenes. In 1992, however, his very human heroes provoked scandal: members of the local

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

demanded that certain canvases on exhibition in the town of

Znojmo Znojmo (; ) is a town in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 34,000 inhabitants. Znojmo is the historical and cultural centre of southwestern Moravia and the second most populated town in the South Moravian Region. The hi ...

be taken down or covered up. This new precedent in the post-communist world of Czech art, and the publicity that accompanied it, became a main factor in Matin Velíšek's speedy and unsought-after celebrity. Velíšek has since been the subject of two documentary films for

Czech Television Czech Television ( ; abbreviation: ČT) is a public television broadcaster in the Czech Republic, broadcasting six channels. Established after breakup of Czechoslovakia in 1992, it is the successor to Czechoslovak Television founded in 1953. H ...

, ''Spring, Hell, Autumn, Winter'' (''Jaro, peklo, podzim, zima'', 1994) and ''The Civilian Parealist's Studio'' (''Ateliér civilistního parealisty'', 1996). He lives in Prague.

Books

Books by/about: *''Lyžaři'', Argo, 1996 *''

Už jsme doma Už jsme doma (, ) are a Czech progressive rock band from Prague who originally formed in Teplice in 1985.pop-up book A pop-up book is any book with three-dimensional space, three-dimensional pages, often with elements that ''pop up'' as a page is turned. The terminology serves as an umbrella term for movable book, pop-ups, tunnel books, transformations, volvel ...

) Selected book covers: *'' A uzřela oslice anděla'', by

Nick Cave Nicholas Edward Cave (born 22 September 1957) is an Australian musician, writer, and actor who fronts the rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Known for his baritone voice, Cave's music is characterised by emotional intensity, a wide variety ...

, Argo, 1995 *'' Farma zvířat'', Argo, 2000 *''Babička (

The Grandmother ''The Grandmother'' () is a novella written by Czech writer Božena Němcová in 1853–1854 and first published in 1855. It is her most popular work and is regarded as a classic piece of Czech literature. This most frequently read book of the ...

)'', by

, Prostor, 2006

External links

*Works online: https://web.archive.org/web/20061215011248/http://scripts.noise.cz/ujd/velisek.htm *Fimfárum: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0299878/ *Portrait: http://www.studiopvm.com/stranky%20s%20fotkama/stranka_foto_velisek.htm

References

*http://archiv.archatheatre.cz/czech/archiv/jaro_peklo_01.htm *https://web.archive.org/web/20061007015306/http://www.jedinak.cz/stranky/txtvelisek.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Velisek, Martin 1963 births Living people People from Duchcov Czech artists