Adriena Šimotová, Joy of Life. Painting and Graphics 1963-1970

The work of Adriena Šimotová (1926–2014) is rightly considered a significant value in Czech modern art. As a respected artist, she presented her work in many important collective and solo exhibitions. This time, we want to draw attention to her early work. We trace it from approximately 1964–1965 until the turn of the next decade. At that time, Šimotová quickly refined her artistic vision and found distinctive, enduring creative principles. These include, above all, the courage not to succumb to the dictates of current opinion, energy, rejection of stereotypes, and the development of themes of intimacy and physicality. She experienced a happy period then – in her personal life and in the intensity of the cultural environment, which brought her inspiring impulses. As she later noted: "…we all thought we still had tomorrow ahead of us." For this reason, we deliberately conclude the selection of works in 1970, when she exhibited a collection of paintings from the last two years at the Špála Gallery with great success. Her work invites careful perception. That is why we interpret it differently and expand the understanding of her work with new, previously overlooked, but important contexts.