Otakar Mrkvička (1898 - 1957) LANDSCAPE WITH A BRIDGE

The aesthetics of Otakar Mrkvička's paintings in the 1930s and 1940s were influenced by the poetics of Devětsil, but also by the darker themes associated with the war, with the artist seeking out various corners of the world and recording forms of human loneliness. A bridge in a deserted landscape with lush vegetation is complemented by a twisted, stumpy tree, an artistic idealized symbol, a witness to events – bent over, but still standing above the human creation connecting the two banks. The bridge as a motif in the landscape appears several times in Mrkvička's works. Fiery flashing clouds cover the bright blue sky and polarize the landscape into a subdued evening light, where Mrkvička's brightly beautiful palette is suppressed, but the contemplative impressiveness of the moment of solitary observation prevails.