Jiří Trnka

Jiří Trnka was one of those exceptional artists who, thanks to their all-round talent, not only significantly influenced a number of fields, but were able to successfully combine them in their work. Although his artistic range was considerably wider, his work in the field of illustration and animated film was crucial. At the time of the war, he already participated in the creation of a new type of illustration, which fully developed in the 1950s and 1960s. After the war, he became one of the founders of the Czech school of animation and thus created a counterpoint to the then dominant Disney approach.

He used various techniques and approaches with overlaps into other fields of art. In illustration he used pen-and-ink drawing, pastel, watercolour, gouache, tempera, collage, scraping and combined techniques, within which he gradually moved from drawing to painting with emphasis on colour. He also used different approaches in composition and was innovative in introducing spatial elements into book design.

As an animator, he worked with cartoon, paper, hand puppet and especially puppet film techniques, where he applied many years of experience with puppet theater. With the film Špalíček (The Czech Year), which reflects folk traditions, he proved that even in this medium artistically challenging images can be created using the specifics of montage, camera work and editing. By connecting all its components, from the artistic stylization of the puppets to the decorations and musical components, he created a stylistically and compositionally unified film that, with some exceptions, did not need any spoken word.

The importance of Jiří Trnka's work is confirmed by about fifty important awards: he was the first Czech artist to receive the prestigious Hans Christian Andersen Award for lifetime achievement in illustration (1968), he received the Gold Medal at the IFF in Bergamo – an award for a creator who contributed to the development of world cinema with their comprehensive work in the field of puppet films (1961), Cannes Film Festival Grand Prize (1946, Zvířátka a Petrovští / Town Musicians of Bremen), Gold Medal for the best puppet film at the Venice IFF (1948, Špalíček / The Czech Year), Méliès Award for the best animated film (1948, Špalíček / The Czech Year; 1950, Císařův slavík / The Emperor's Nightingale; 1952, Staré pověsti České / Old Czech Legends), Special Prize of the Cannes Film Festival (1959, Sen noci svatojánské / A Midsummer Night's Dream), Special Jury Prize at the International Animated Film Festival (1965, Ruka / The Hand) and others.

The Ladislav Sutnar Faculty of Design and Art proudly follows and honours Trnka´s artistic legacy, especially in the field of illustration and animated film. That is why it established an international art symposium in 2021 which, with the permission of the artist´s family, bears the name of Jiří Trnka.

Under the motto "Freedom is My Home," the third annual international symposium dedicated to the work of Jiří Trnka will take place in October. Alongside the symposium's expert program, various accompanying events for the general public will be organized at several locations in Plzeň. The symposium honors the work of this native of Plzeň, whose contributions to the development of various artistic fields are undeniable. It also provides a platform for leading domestic and international artists, experts, and scholars in illustration and animation to meet. A significant aspect of the symposium is its educational and networking component, which focuses on connecting artists with students from art universities.

Jiří Trnka Award Winners 2024

Joanna Concejo, illustrator / Poland

Petr Sís, illustrator / Czech Republic

Fondazione Štěpán Zavřel / Italy

EXHIBITIONS

1. 10. – 31.10. 2024

EDUCATION AND RESEARCH LIBRARY OF PILSENER REGION

Opening on October 1 at 5:00 PM

Anthology of Czech Literature 1989–2023
Students Exhibition of the Didactic Illustration Studio of the Ladislav Sutnar Faculty of Design and Art

Banned Books 
Exhibition of Paper Objects Created by Students of the Book Design and Paper Shaping Studio of the Ladislav Sutnar Faculty of Design and Art

PANELS OUTSIDE THE EDUCATION AND RESEARCH LIBRARY OF THE PILSENER REGION

Opening on October 1 at 5:00 PM in the Education and Research Library of Pilsener Region

Birds of Passage
Personalities of Migration: Students Exhibition of the Didactic Illustration Studio and Comics and Illustration for Children Studio of the Ladislav Sutnar Faculty of Design and Art

7. 10. – 29. 10. 2024

PILSEN CITY HALL

Opening on October 7 at 5:00 PM

Labyrinths Within Us
Students Exhibition of the Didactic Illustration Studio of the Ladislav Sutnar Faculty of Design and Art

This exhibition showcases illustrations created by students from the Didactic Illustration Studio at the Ladislav Sutnar Faculty of Design and Art. The students drew inspiration from quotes from Christian literature, selected by Professor Ivana Noble, head of the Ecumenical Institute at the Protestant Theological Faculty of Charles University, as well as from the works of Arnošt Lustig, with quotes chosen by his daughter, Eva Lustigová. The exhibition also includes books illustrated by students from the studio. The exhibition was conceptualized by Renáta Fučíková, head of the studio, with production managed by studio assistant Eva Bartošová.

 10. 10. – 31. 10. 2024

GREAT SYNAGOGUE

Opening on October 10 at 5:00 PM

Guests of the Jiří Trnka International Symposium
Joanna Concejo, Eitan Eloa, Marto Kelbl, Nikola Logosová, Petr Sís, Studio Agrafka, Fondazione Štěpán Zavřel

Food as a Ritual 
Students Exhibition: Didactic Illustration Studio of the Ladislav Sutnar Faculty of Design and Art and the Holon Institute of Technology (Israel)

23. 10. – 7. 12. 2024

LADISLAV SUTNAR GALLERY

Opening on October 23 at 7:00 PM

Freedom Is My Home
Showcase of the Jiří Trnka Award Winners: Joanna Concejo, Petr Sís, Fondazione Štěpán Zavřel

Originally from Poland, the artist Joanna Concejo, who resides in France, is exhibiting illustrations that evoke a strikingly poetic, intimate atmosphere. Illustrator and animated film creator Petr Sís, who found a new home in the USA after leaving Czechoslovakia, is showcasing not only excerpts from his key books but also other areas of his work. Fondazione Štěpán Zavřel, an organization based in Sarmede, northern Italy, has selected both Zavřel's own works and the works of four illustrators from its numerous esteemed guests – Gerda Dendooven, Andrey Dugin, Éric Puybaret, and Svetlin Vassilev.

The exhibition is part of the third edition of the Jiří Trnka International Symposium, whose theme 'Freedom is My Home' can be related not only to the presented works but also to the lives and fates of their authors.

The exhibition is curated by Andrea Sloupová.

PUBLIC READING

PLZEŇ ZASTÁVKA

October 1, 2024

Atlas of Europe
Nikola Logosová (reading and workshop)
workshop at 4 PM presentation at 6 PM
free entry

October 2, 2024

Not a Girl, Not a Boy
Marto Kelbl (reading and workshop)  
workshop at 4 PM, public reading at 6 PM
free entry

SEMLER’S RESIDENCE

October 9, 2024 at 5 PM
Václav Havel: Powerful and Powerless        
Martin Vopěnka a Eva Bartošová (reading and discussion)
free entry

October 16, 2024 at 5 PM
Arnošt’s Journey
Eva Lustigová (reading and discussion)
free entry

The event is held under the auspices of the Minister of Culture, Martin Baxa.

We thank our partners for their support:

City of Plzeň

Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic

Czech Centers

Frame Festival

Fondazione Štěpán Zavřel

Holon Institute of Technology

Education and Research Library of Pilsener Region

Gallery of West Bohemia in Plzeň

The Jiří Trnka International Symposium 2024 is held with the financial support of the City of Plzeň.

25 - 27 October, 2022

The second edition of the international symposium on illustration and animated art offered a series of lectures and workshops for art students and the professional public led by theoreticians and artists from around the world.

At the same time, the public could visit five accompanying exhibitions taking place at galleries and instituions around Pilsen. An extensive exhibition of illustrations of folk, ethnic and author´s fairy tales took place at the Great Synagogue in Pilsen, presenting not only student works but above all illustrations created by the symposium guests. More student works were presented at the Puppet Museum, the Incubator Gallery and the Education and Research Library of the Pilsen Region. The presentation of the Jiří Trnka Award laureates took place at the Ladislav Sutnar Gallery. 

The symposium included the very first award ceremony of the Jiří Trnka Award for extraordinary artistic and theoretical contribution in the field of illustration and animation. Two new publications were introduced during the event - Inner Gardens, the proceedings to the Jiří Trnka International Symposium 2021, and a unique bibliophile edition of the book Two legends of the Grail with Jiří Trnka´s illustrations. The medieval stories are retold by Czech author and poet Radek Malý, graphic design is by Sutnar Faculty´s student Vojtěch Liebl. Jiří Trnka´s son, artist Jan Trnka, was a special guest of the event.

Jiřího Trnka Award laureates / 2022 

Iku Dekune, illustrator / Japan
André Letria, illustrator / Portugal
Biennial of Illustrations Bratislava / Slovakia

The Jiří Trnka International Symposium welcomed illustrators, animators and theoreticians from the Czech Republic, Japan, Portugal, Hungary, Colombia and Slovakia. The symposium participants had the possibility to attend lectures and presentations of local and visiting lecturers, watch animated films, take part in inspiring meetings with renowned artists and theoreticians and see presentations of Sutnar Faculty graduates and students. 

Guests and lecturers  

Theoreticians: Radim Kopáč, Jana Čeňková, Michaela Mertová, Markéta Formanová, Andrea Sloupová, Fanuel Hanán Díaz (Colombia), Emese Révész (Hungary)

Institution: Biennial of Illustrations Bratislava (Slovakia)

Artists: Iku Dekune (Japan), Aneta Holasová, Renáta Fučíková, André Letria (Portugal), Filip Pošivač, Jindra Čapek

The Jiří Trnka International Symposium 2022 took place with financial support of the City of Pilsen.

4  – 7 October, 2021

Trnka’s oeuvre in general, and his book Zahrada (“Garden”) in particular, have served as the inspiration for the pilot edition of the international symposium on illustration and animation, which was organized at the Sutnar Faculty in October 2021 and was very well received.

It was the first edition of a symposium for professional artists, theoreticians and students, which will take place on a regular basis in future. Its aim is to commemorate the strong central European tradition in these fields of visual art and to contribute to their development through discussions, lectures, presentations of works created by students and professionals, and through workshops held by visual artists from the Czech Republic and other countries.

The symposium’s comprehensive programme included a series of lectures and presentations by Czech and international artists and theoreticians, exhibitions of works created by visiting artists and students of the Faculty, presentations of student projects as well as visits to places linked with the life and work of Jiří Trnka. The opportunity of direct contact and intensive cooperation with the visiting artists during the workshops is of great benefit to the students.

Jiří Trnka International Symposium 2021 hosted the following illustrators, animators and theoreticians from the Czech Republic, Colombia and Italy:

Eva Bartošová, Veronika Bílková, Eliška Děcká, Fanuel Hanán Díaz (Colombia – online lecture), Vojtěch Domlátil, Renáta Fučíková, Marco Ieie (Italy – presentation and workshop), Kristýna Klaban Gregorová, Marie Kohoutová, Radek Malý, Tereza Marianová, Andrea Sloupová, Tereza Ščerbová, Jan Šrámek, Andrea Tachezy.

The symposium was held under the auspices of the Mayor of the City of Pilsen.