Lhoták Kamil 1912–1990

Scout in the age of motoring, 1946

coloured pen and ink drawing, paper, 19 × 28 cm, signed. KL46
Kamil Lhoták, a leading member of the famous Group 42, once became one of the most significant personalities of 20th century Czech painting. He soon came to his characteristic expression that fully corresponded to the group's direction, whose basic statement was the text by Jindřich Chalupecký, The World, in which we live. Kamil Lhoták, however, brought new approaches to the group to urban and technical motifs. Unlike most of the others members - painters, poets, sculptor and photographer - he portrayed them with a romantic feeling. He could admirably express the nostalgic atmosphere of Prague's periphery, various workshops, the port of Holešovice, boats on the river....Loved technical inventions - airships, balloons, airplanes, cars, motorbikes or velocipedes. His admiration for machines is connected with his interest in automobiles, motorcycle and bicycle racing, which he knew very well. From his childhood he was interested in the visual arts, he became acquainted with the work of of many modern artists, which of course influenced his entire development. He created his own world, which he drew and painted in his unmistakable handwriting and inexhaustible inventiveness. Authenticity confirmed by Ing. Libor Šteffek, MBA.