František Ženíšek belongs to the "Generation of the National Theater," a group of painters, sculptors and architects who in the late 19th century gave Prague, and the Czech nation, some of its most significant national treasures.

Paintings and drawings from throughout Ženíšek's career, including studies for his famous works inside the National Theater and National Museum, are currently on exhibit at Wallenstein Riding School (Valdštejnská jízdárna). The show provides not only an opportunity to view his works in all their variations, but also a visual lesson in Czech history.

At the entrance to the show is the painting The Judgment of the Hussites (1885), and elsewhere in the exhibition are other significant scenes from Czech history and legend. There are variations on Přemysl the ploughman being summoned to the throne (Libuše's Mission), as well as St. Wenceslas on Horseback, and a fine drawing of Czech soldiers defending the Prague Stone Bridge against Swedish invaders.

Ženíšek had the ability to capture an entire story in one lively and detailed painting. In Oldřich and Božena (1884), Oldřich is portrayed as a prince on horseback who spots a beautiful peasant girl. She and her girlfriends are barefoot, but she is not ashamed before the prince and his entourage. The natural setting around them is lush, and the prince's decision is certain: He'll take the Czech peasant instead of a German princess. Thus begins the legendary origin of the Přemyslid dynasty, which was a popular motif in Czech art, literature and theater from the end of the 18th century through the generation of the National Theater.

The centerpiece of the show is Destruction of the Adamites (1903), a rough and unfinished work. Ženíšek was apparently fascinated by this event in Czech history, which took place during the Reformation. Jan Žižka's army massacred a group of free-loving religious fanatics (the Adamite sect) just outside the walls of Tábor in south Bohemia.

This uncompleted painting has one finished focal point: Among a group of naked proto-hippie men and women trying to escape the soldiers, a scared, nude woman is pulled by her long red hair by one of Žižka's men in armor. Her eyes fall back with her head, like a surprised animal caught in a trap. Ženíšek painted this scene twice with slight variations, but only this work is in the National Gallery's collection. The other (also unfinished) version is in a private collection in the United States.

Born in 1849, Ženíšek was just coming of age as an artist when the National Awakening began. And so not only his talent but also his patriotic leanings contributed to his inclusion in the remarkable interior decorations commissioned for the National Theater (and all other significant national buildings) until his death in 1916.

Over the course of his career, Ženíšek painted the foyer and ceiling of the National Theater's auditorium; contributed historical wall paintings overlooking the Pantheon in the National Museum; added figural paintings to the dome of Smetana Hall and did mural paintings for a room dedicated to Julius Gregr, both in the Municipal House (Obecní dům); and designed stained-glass windows for two churches: Sts. Cyril and Methodius in Karlín and St. Ludmila's church at náměstí Míru. Original works and studies for each of these significant commissions are included in the exhibition.

Ženíšek was also famous for his many portraits. One of the best in this show is an 1894 work portraying the elegant Emperor Franz Josef I. There are also portraits of various cardinals and mayors of Prague, as well as of past aristocrats such as Karel III of Schwarzenberg, George Christian Lobkowitz and other figures central to the Czech nation and its history.

While Ženíšek was a Czech nationalist, he didn't shun the Habsburgs. His Allegory of Plenty (1891), a triptych done for the ceiling of the opulent dining car in a train specially made for Franz Josef I, is a standout in this exhibit. It is a wonder of winged children and floating Cupids in the clouds, and can otherwise be seen only through the thick windows of the original dining car at the National Technical Museum.

Most of Ženíšek's works are best seen in their original settings. The artists of the National Theater generation worked in close cooperation with one another, and the power of each of their works in public buildings is magnified by the juxtaposition with their colleagues' contributions.