Gersaintův štít [Signboard for Gersaint] by Kolář, Jiří

Prague: Svoboda, 1965. Quarto (24.5 x 17 cm). Gatherings loose in printed wrappers; 42, [2] pp. Introductory text in Czech. Very good; small tear to front panel; two unidentified signatures to flap. A distinguished Czech artist and poet, Kolář (1914-2002) was the co-founder of the existentialist post-war group "Skupina 42" (Group 42) and ultimately became best known for his innovative collages. His period of visual experimentation began with an interest in concrete poetry in the 1960s, while part of the Kavárna Slavia group along with Václav Havel and Josef Hiršal. Taking its name from Watteau's painting, this publication gathers thirty "silent poems" consisting of dense typographic arrangements, each dedicated to a key modernist artist and, at times, vaguely alluding to their individual styles. The artists include Brancusi, Duchamp, Kupka, Lissitzky, Malevich, Pollock etc. The book was also published in French and English variants, although all editions are scarce. The text part contains a short biography and overview of the artist's work, as well as exhibitions and gallery holdings. Outside the Czech Republic, KVK, OCLC show copies at MART and Tate (English); NYPL (French); and St. Gallen (Czech).