František Drtikol (1883-1961)

The first Czech photographer to gain worldwide recognition during his lifetime. His photographs enrich the collections of the world's most important galleries.

He was born on 3 March 1883 in Příbram in the family of František Drtikol, a merchant, and his wife Marie, née Opplová. After unsuccessfully studying at the grammar school, he trained as a photographer under Antonín Mattas from 1898 to 1901. The religiosity of the town with its centuries-old tradition of Marian pilgrimages to the Holy Mountain was one of the starting points of Drtikol's lifelong deep interest in spiritual themes and philosophy.

Drtikol opened his first studio in 1908 in Příbram. This was shortly after graduating from the vocational school "Lehr und Versuchsanstalt für Photographie" in Munich and his subsequent military service. Photographs influenced by the Art Nouveau style of the turn of the century date from the period of the Pribram studio. Like his other works, they are characterized not only by emotional and ideological depth, but also by excellent technical processing. These are landscape compositions, genre scenes and portraits. His images depicting miners at work underground continue the tradition of place. The author's early nudes, probably the first photographs of this kind in Bohemia, also come from Příbram.

The opening of the renowned studio in Prague in Vodičkova Street dates back to 1912. Here, famous psychological portraits of many important personalities of culture and public life (T. G. Masaryk, Edvard Beneš, Alfons Mucha, Paul Vallery, Thákur and others) were created, as well as many unique nudes. The beginning of his Prague practice is also connected with his collaboration with Augustin Škarda (album From the Courts and Courtyards of Old Prague).

In the years after World War I, the photographer managed to innovate his work and enriched it with the influences of expressionism, futurism, cubism, purism and abstractionist tendencies. He gained worldwide recognition in the second half of the 1920s, when he presented himself as a leading representative of the Art Deco style in photography at numerous exhibitions in Europe and America. In 1925 he won the Grand Prix at the International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Art in Paris. It was also here in 1929 that the album of nudes Les nus Drtikol was published.

In the first half of the 1930s, he began working with paper and wooden models and creating meditative compositions. Increasingly, his attention turned to the spiritual teachings of the East. In 1935 he stopped his photographic activity and handed over his archive of more than 5,000 works to the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague. In the following years, he lived in seclusion in Prague's Spořilov, devoting himself to translating spiritual literature from German, writing down visions and thoughts, yoga, Buddhism and teaching spiritual friends. In drawing and printmaking he worked on symbolist themes and painted pictures in which he wanted to capture his feelings from meditations.

He died on 13 January 1961 in Prague and is buried in his native Příbram.

In 2000, the gallery in Zámeček - Ernestin, established by the town of Příbram, was named after František Drtikol. Part of the exhibition space is a permanent exhibition dedicated to the life and work of the famous native, whose extensive artistic work and human destiny remain a source of new inspiration.

Elaborated by: Hana Ročňáková