Lot information
The extraordinary publication was published in an edition of 333 copies on the occasion of the exhibition of the same name held at the National Gallery of China in Beijing on 26 July - 7 August 2005. It reproduces the cycle of 105 ink paintings Man and the Earth, in which František Kupka captured the history of humanity and its cultures at the beginning of the 20th century, as a visual accompaniment to the books L'Homme et la Terre by Élysée Recluse. The numbering of the chapters is the same as the French original published in 1905-1908.In the graphic adaptation of the leading Chinese artist Shen Shaojun, the traditional Chinese artistic bond of the Ming Dynasty, admired worldwide, is connected with Western culture, represented by the Czech native Kupka.
The book won a prestigious award at the 17th Polygraphic Fair in Hong Kong in January 2006.
Introduction: Václav Klaus, President of the Czech Republic; Pavel Dostál, Minister of Culture of the Czech Republic; Vítězslav Grepl, Ambassador of the Czech Republic to China; Feng Yuan, general director of the National Gallery of China
Biography of František Kupka: Anna Pravdová
František Kupka - Man and Earth: Ludmila Vachtová
Nine specimens are kept in a box made by hand from jin-s'nanmu wood, which grows only in China; its shape is derived from the style reserved for gifts intended for the imperial palace.
The cassette and the book weigh 12 kilograms.
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