František Pavlů (1932–2008), a sculptor, medallist and creator of muchláže (crumplages), was a prominent member of the Klub konkretistů (Concrete Artists’ Club). After studying at the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague from 1952 to 1958, he was active in the Prague art scene for almost a decade. In 1968, he relocated to Liberec, where he lived and worked until his death. He became actively involved in cultural activities there from the outset. In 1969, he helped organise the exhibition Socha a město (The Sculpture and the City), where he installed his copper sculpture Křídla (Wings) in the Liberec municipal park. This monumental work, based on the layering of vertical lines, exemplifies Pavlů’s sense of the architectural concept of sculpture. Together with his interest in Neo-constructivist register and the language of minimalism, this became a typical feature of the artist’s sculptural work, not only in the second half of the 1960s, but also making a significant impact from the 1970s to the 1990s. An important parallel to his sculptural work are Pavlů’s works on paper, which he produced continuously from the 1960s onwards, though he devoted himself to it especially intensively after 1990. As well as drawings, collages, monotypes and frottages, particular mention should be made of his crumplages, for which Pavlů found new expressive solutions through his experimental approach.

As only a few small catalogues have been published to date on the work and life of František Pavlů, Museum Kampa has prepared a monograph on the artist. The book provides the broadest possible overview of Pavlů’s creative journey, ranging from sculptures and medals to works in public spaces and works on paper, and finally structural painting. Building on several recent books prepared by Museum Kampa, including works by Jiří Hilmar, Jiří Bielecký, Jaroslava Kurandová, Zdeněk Rybka, and Svatoslav Böhm, the publication emphasises the connections between artistic development and the activities of the Concrete Artists’ Club.

The publication and exhibition mapping František Pavlů’s œuvre represent another important step in Museum Kampa’s consistent programme, which aims to address gaps in scholarly studies on artists associated with the Concrete Artists’ Club.

Ilona Víchová, exhibition curator and author of the publication