Many happy returns

Jiří Načeradský is incredibly productive for a fresh septuagenarian. An exhibition titled simply "Paintings 2009" at Mánes presents around 50 of his paintings, almost all of them done over the past year or so - and these represent only a fraction of his output during this time.

Curated by Richard Drury, the exhibition belatedly marks Načeradský's 70th birthday, which was in September. It is telling that the artist decided to focus on his latest work, rather than look back over his half-century career. One thing that's clear from this selection: He never grows tired of women and eroticism as subjects.

Načeradský is best-known at home and internationally as one of the main Czech representatives of the New Figuration. This was not a true movement with a manifesto and such; rather, New Figuration was a swing of the pendulum back toward representational art after an era when abstraction - known in the local context as Informel - held sway.

After finishing his studies at Prague's Academy of Fine Arts in the early 1960s, Načeradský became part of a general revival of figure painting gaining momentum at the time. He was among the first Czech artists to concentrate primarily on the figure. He also holds the distinction of being one of the first Czech artists to be banned from publicly exhibiting in the hard-line Normalization period that followed the 1968 invasion.

His first solo show was in 1967 - in the same space where his current show is being held - and shortly thereafter he went on a sojourn to Paris (1968-69). After his return, Načeradský was unable to show his work (his next solo show was in 1978), so he made a living restoring art. Toward the end of communism, he became a core member of the free association of artists called "12/15, Better Late Than Never," which paved the way for a resurgence of independent culture.

After the Velvet Revolution, Načeradský returned in 1990 to the Academy of Fine Arts - this time as a professor, heading the Atelier of Monumental Painting. After leaving this post, he joined the art faculty at FaVU at the Technical University in Brno, where he worked until 2003.

Despite the normalization-era ban on his work, Načeradský persevered. His figurative paintings, which included representations of human presence through symbols or traces, also incorporated grotesque tendencies seen in Czech art of the period, which provided a means to metaphorically communicate his social and political views. Acting in a jester's capacity, Načeradský used burlesque humor to hold a mirror to society, reflecting the distortions inflicted by the post-1968 regime. (He was not alone in this - a similar approach was taken by such artists as Karel Nepraš, Michael Rittstein, Jiří Sopko and Jiří Anderle.)

The human form is Načeradský's eternal theme, and in that sense these new works are on a continuum with his earlier work. The full focus here is on the foreground figures, which are set against flat, colorful backgrounds with some painterly marks. The figures themselves are exaggerated, larger than life. Usually, they are shown in full action, fornicating, dancing, even fighting (though some of his male figures sit more sedately over beers in a pub).

These new works tie in to several longstanding cycles centering on female figures, which Načeradský calls Venuses and kudlanky (mantises). The "mantises" are attenuated creatures with spiky, claw-like appendages. Their heads are often almond-shaped, or composed of diamond or triangular shapes with vertical mouths that appear like vaginas with teeth. They sport one or more sets of breasts that spring out sideways, either spheres crowned by sharp spikes or triangles with what look like little propellers at the tips. They are like the aliens of popular imagination before Avatar.

Quotations from icons of high art often appear in Načeradský's paintings, and, in this show, a viewer might notice nods to Titian and Picasso. What's essential are the relationships among figures, the dynamic pas de deux the artist creates through deft composition and use of negative space.

Načeradský shares a common trait with other members of the 12/15 group: These artists, who managed to maintain their independence through hard times, remained true to their earlier styles, even after the political tides had turned - always having something to say about the state of society.

Mánes is not only where Načeradský held his first solo show, but where the 12/15 group staged its first exhibition in 1987. At 70, then, Načeradský is cycling back to his roots - in both subject matter and venue - still painting prolifically and energetically.

Mimi Fronczak Rogers can be reached at
Features@praguepost.com