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Czech HistoryJiří Trnka: an artist who turned puppets into film stars
It would be hard to meet a Czech whose childhood was not touched (perhaps
unconsciously) by the art of Jiří Trnka, a painter, puppeteer, illustrator
and above all, the founding father of Czech animated film. His poetic
drawings brought immortality to books that would otherwise be long
forgotten. And his animated films bestowed dozens of puppets and drawings
with life. More
One on OneMiroslav Trejtnar on teaching the Czech art of puppetry to international students
For the tenth year in a row, a small workshop in the Prague neighbourhood
of Vršovice is hosting a group of students from the US, India, Australia
and other countries who come to learn how to make traditional Czech
marionettes. The man who runs the courses and who teaches his international
students everything they need to know about puppets is Miroslav Trejtnar,
our guest in this edition of One on One. When I visited his workshops, the
course was halfway trough and the students had just begun carving their
puppets, which as Mr Trejtnar says it’s one of the most exiting stages of
the programme. More
ArtsStudio Bratři v triku - the cradle of Czech animation
The studio Bratři v triku, or “Brothers in T-Shirts”, has been the
major producer of Czech animated film since the 1940s. Virtually every
talent in Czech cartooning has gone through the studio, and it has won
essentially every national and international award available to animators.
But most importantly perhaps, the work of the studio has influenced
generation after generation of Eastern Europeans and audiences elsewhere in
the world as well. In this week’s Arts, Christian Falvey takes a peek
into the cradle of Czech animation. More
ArtsThe theatre of Spejbl and Hurvínek: A hit with Czech children since 1945
Divadlo Hurvínka a Spejbla – the theater of Hurvínek and Spejbl – has
been a favorite destination for children in Prague for the past 65 years.
It is home to the country’s most popular puppets, father Spejbl and his
son Hurvínek. The Dejvice theater just returned to its original location
that was closed down for two years due to renovation. Sarah Borufka visited
the new space and even met the voice behind the puppets.
More
Current AffairsPopular marionette theater reopens in Prague
After two years of reconstruction, Prague’s famed marionette theatre
“Divadlo Spejbla a Hurvínka” is reopening its doors on Thursday. The
newly renovated location is the home of the Czech Republic’s most famous
puppets, the father-son pair of Spejbl and Hurvínek, and will also feature
a puppet museum. Sarah Borufka reports.
More
MagazineMagazine
In Magazine: Motorcyclists conquer the 'globe of death', a stunt not tried
in 31 years; a lumberjack makes a curious find of World War II binoculars
embedded in a tree; the Vltava River gives up historic items in Český
Krumlov; museum-goers get glimpse into ‘lives’ of historic marionettes;
‘80s paper dolls Jana, Dana, and Lena return; how to meet the love of
your life through an ad… on a sandwich.
More
Panorama“The Garden” – an exhibition of work by legendary illustrator/animator Jiří Trnka - opens at Galerie Smečky
This week saw the opening of a new exhibition of some of the best work by
one of former Czechoslovakia’s most famous illustrators, painters as well
as the father of Czech animated film, Jiří Trnka, who died in 1969. Trnka
is beloved for his creative use of highly detailed and mobile marionettes,
and remains a veritable favourite among children for his illustrations –
not least in Jan Karafiát’s famous Broučci (Fireflies) and also
Trnka’s own much loved children’s classic, The Garden – about five
boys, five elephants, a curmudgeon of a tomcat and their adventures beyond
a rusty door in a garden wall.
More
ArtsStudio Bratři v triku - the cradle of Czech animation
The studio Bratři v triku, or “Brothers in T-Shirts”, has been the
major producer of Czech animated film since the 1940s. Virtually every
talent in Czech cartooning has gone through the studio, and it has won
essentially every national and international award available to animators.
But most importantly perhaps, the work of the studio has influenced
generation after generation of Eastern Europeans and audiences elsewhere in
the world as well. In this week’s Arts, Christian Falvey takes a peek
into the cradle of Czech animation.
More
MailboxMailbox
Today in Mailbox: South Bohemian carp, the pronunciation of the name of the
Czech-American sculptor Albín Polášek, the Czech animation artist Jiří
Trnka. Listeners quoted: Colin Rose, Walter Wynn, Rusty Edwards, Hiroshi
Katayama.
More
ArtsThe Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theatre
Vít Hořejš established the Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theatre in
1990 after coming into possession of old puppets that had been gathering
dust for decades in the attic of an old Czech church. The group’s
performances – often based on classic Czech tales – feature both
puppets and live actors. When I visited its studio in Brooklyn, Vít, a
Czech who’s been living in New York for decades, told me all about the
origins and activities of the Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theatre.
More
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