Expressionism and Cubo-Expressionism (1910-1930)

Expressionism appeared in the first decade of the 20th century mainly in the German-speaking countries as a reaction to the previous artistic movements, especially to the sensualism of Impressionism and the softness and aestheticism of the lingering Art Nouveau. It was marked by a significant re-evaluation of a realistic vision of reality, and inclined towards emotional and dramatic expression, often supported by the use of colour. A common denominator in Expressionist works was the effort to express the mood and feelings that accumulated in society before and after the outbreak of the First World War. Acceptance of Expressionist tendencies in the domestic environment was accelerated by the exhibition of Edvard Munch’s works in Prague in 1905.

Bohumil Kubišta combined these trends in 1912 in the portrait of his friend, the painter Jan Zrzavý. Kubišta portrayed Zrzavý not only as his thoughtful friend, but tried to capture the essence of the artist-thinker. And so, in this picture, with its elements of Cubism, the universal plane merges with the personal plane. The symbolic use of colours, the painter's certainty and the mathematically thought-out composition provide this portrait of his friend with an extraordinary, though at first glance, somewhat restrained, beauty.