Exhibition of Jindřich Krejča in the Schaubmar Mill is not a selection from a set of illustrations lent to us by his widow Anna Krejčová and his son Henrich Krejča. From the total volume, we chose originals which were used in the books Z našej prírody. Rastliny (From Our Nature. Plants, 1979), Z našej prírody. Živočíchy (From Our Nature. Animals, 1981), and Základy poľovníctva (Basics of Hunting,1988).
On particular sheets we recognise related species and variations of plants and animals; we get acquainted with forest animals, birds, but also with dog breeds. In them, each of us will find their own story from their childhood or youth, when we curiously browsed the pages filled with pictures of colourful flowers, peculiar bugs, dangerous predators, or songbirds. Come with us again into the world of animals and plants, into the nature of our childhood.
The natural human interest in observing and studying nature is testified by the history of books of the encyclopaedia type. Botanical and zoological illustration has been developing since the times of antiquity and complementing manuscripts and texts about fauna and flora. The 19th century saw its greatest development. The entire society was changing, new disciplines occurred, natural science associations were established, new possibilities opened for amateur biologists and botanists. Hand in hand with new interest in nature appeared an artistic discipline focusing on illustration of publications on fauna and flora. Emphasis on realistic depiction of nature reflects the function of such type of illustration used for education and learning about the diversity and beauty of nature. This tradition was the base of modern atlases and popular science literature in the 20th century. An excellent example of scientific illustration in Slovakia is the extensive work of Jindřich Krejča.
JindřichKrejča (4 April, 1920, Žlebské Chvalovice – 29 May, 1991, Bratislava) an illustrator of popular scientific literature graduated from the State School of Graphics in Prague. In the late 1940s, he settled in Bratislava and became a member of the Union of Slovak Fine Artists. From the mid-50s, he began to illustrate natural science publications. He cooperated with scientists from the Faculty of Natural Sciences of the Comenius University in Bratislava and established contacts with several of the Slovak publishing houses. For many years he was the chair of the Príroda publishing house committee. He won many awards and acknowledgements. His books have been published in numerous re-editions and language mutations also abroad. During his life he published dozens of books with thousands of pictures of plants and animals.
Partners:
Realised with the financial support of the Ministry of Transport and Construction of the Slovak Republic.