Bohemian Enameled Glass – 1700s to 1800s

Today we are looking at the beautiful hand painted pieces of Bohemian enameled glass – 1700s to 1800s. The glass then was non-leaded and the painted details are in vitreous enamel, also known as porcelain enamel. This kind of enamel was used to decorate glass vessels since the Roman period, and there is evidence of...

Bohemian Glass, CULTURE

October 12, 2016

Čapek’s Bookshelf: The Book Design of Josef Čapek

Look at what we found today! A rare Japanese First Edition copy of Čapek’s Bookshelf: The Book Design of Josef Čapek. This amazing full color edition features 119 Czech Avant Garde book covers from the 1920s and 1930s. Superb collection of Czech avant garde graphic design from the 1920s and 1930s. Also includes an appreciation...

Art and Design, CULTURE

October 8, 2016

Prague Street Art, A Beginners Guide

Prague has everything, fairytale like castles, breathtaking architecture, delicious food, hospitable people, but most of all it has an amazing amount of street art. No matter where you are in the city whether it be in the metro, at the park, or simply walking it’s many winding streets beautiful art can be seen. Art can...

Art and Design, CULTURE

October 6, 2016

Czech Posters for Films

Again we came across something wonderful. Today we are sharing Czech Posters for Films from the Collection of Terry Posters. This is the official Exhibition Catalogue from 2013 and was published on the occasion of the exhibition from August 28 to December 1, 2013 at the National Film Center, The National Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo and...

Art and Design, CULTURE

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October 1, 2016

The New Vision for the New Architecture Czechoslovakia 1918-1938

Browsing at an old bookstore, we came across a treasure! The New Vision for the New Architecture Czechoslovakia 1918-1938 by Jaroslav Andel, published by Scalo Verlag AG, Zurich 2006. What a beautiful and fantastic huge volume featuring the Modernist and avant-garde architecture from Czechoslovakia from 1918 to 1938. This hardcover edition of The New Vision for...

Architecture, Books, CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT

September 28, 2016

St. Wenceslas Day

Today is September 28th, better known as St. Wenceslas Day. It is a National Holiday in the Czech Republic. This holiday is always celebrated on the 28th of September and, is also known as ‘Czech Statehood Day’. It has been a public holiday since 2000. It is the feast day of St. Wenceslas, the patron...

Holidays, LIFESTYLE

September 22, 2016

Prague – City of 100 Spires

Prague is known as “The city of a hundred spires” or “The city of one hundred spires” (Stovezata Praha in Czech language). and lately, we seem to be coming across 100 older books which highlight the architecture of what we believe to be the most beautiful city in the world. The Prague – City of 100...

Architecture, CULTURE

September 8, 2016

Jaroslav Ježek and the Brussels Style

Jaroslav Ježek was a leading Czech designer who gained fame for his practical and figural porcelain items. He was one of the founders of the Brussels style, an important development in Czech design in 1950s and 60s. Featured at the World Expo in 1958, he represented Czechoslovakia very successfully, taking away two major awards. Jaroslav Ježek (1923...

Art and Design, CULTURE

August 29, 2016

Watch This: The Vengeance of She with Olinka Berova

The Vengeance of She is a 1968 British fantasy film directed by Cliff Owen and made by 20th Century Fox. It stars Czech actress Olinka Berova (aka Olga Schoberová) and John Richardson. It was made by Hammer Films as a loose sequel to the 1965 hit film She which starred Ursula Andress. The character Kallikrates, played by John Richardson, is the...

CULTURE, Movies

August 28, 2016

The Photographs of Karel Plicka

Karel Plicka (1894 – 1987) was a Czechoslovak photographer, film director, cinematographer, folklorist, and pedagogue. He is considered a founder of Slovak film education and filmmaking. He helped establish the genre of ethnographic film in Czechoslovakia. In 1938 Karel founded photography and cinematography courses at the Škola umeleckých remesiel (School of Applied Arts) in Bratislava....

CULTURE, Photography

August 4, 2016

Cubism by Emil Filla

Emil Filla was born in Moravia and spent his entire childhood growing up in the Moravian town of Brno before moving to Prague. Filla studied art at the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague but left school to become a member in a group of artists who called themselves “The Eight.” Filla is known mostly for...

Art and Design, CULTURE

July 23, 2016

Vyšehrad – The Upper Castle & Cemetery of Prague

In Czech, the word for “upper castle” is Vyšehrad. Vyšehrad was built around the 10th Century, high on a hill overlooking the Vltava River. It is a historical fort / stronghold / castle structure. Within the grounds is the Basilica of St Peter and St Paul, a neo-Gothic church. Originally founded in 1070-1080 by the Czech King Vratislav II, the Romanesque...

Architecture, CULTURE

July 18, 2016

Vintage Czech Movie Posters from the 1970s

Today we’re sharing some artistic posters from the 1970s that were created specifically for film. Vintage Czech movie posters from the 1970s have such a specific style and look to them and we just love it! We’ve always loved Czech modern art. Bohemians always seemed to be on the edge of whatever new style was...

Art and Design, CULTURE

July 13, 2016

The Czechoslovak People’s Army in the Early 1960s

A Look Back at the Czechoslovak People’s Army in the Early 1960s is inspired by today’s date, July 13th. Today is a special day because it’s my father’s birthday, and while I was looking at old photographs of him, I found this collection of old army photos of him and his friends. Now I cannot...

Bohemians, CULTURE, Photography

July 10, 2016

The Good Soldier Švejk in Color

We’ve already shared The Good Soldier Švejk (pronounced: shvayke) here in much more detail before, but today we came across some sweet images in color, so we are sharing once again. In The Good Soldier Švejk, celebrated Czech writer and anarchist Jaroslav Hašek combined dazzling wordplay and piercing satire in a hilariously subversive depiction of the...

Art and Design, CULTURE

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June 28, 2016

František Hilmar, Father of the Polka

Here is something that most of you may not know about our family… My father can trace his history back to around 1648, when the first Hilmar (Hylmar) came from Swedish/Nordic territory to Košťanech (in what’s now known as the Czech Republic) as a soldier in the Thirty Years’ War. He settled and made his...

Bohemians, CULTURE, LIFESTYLE, Music