Eva Švankmajerová (September 25, 1940 – October 20, 2005) was a

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech, ...

surrealist Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to ...

artist. She was born Eva Dvořáková. A native of the Czech town of

Kostelec nad Černými lesy Kostelec nad Černými lesy (german: Schwarzkosteletz) is a town in Prague-East District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 3,800 inhabitants. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban m ...

, she moved to

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

in 1958 to study at the Prague School of Interior Design and later the Academy of Performing Arts (Theater Department). From 1970, she was an active member of the Czech and Slovak Surrealist Group. She was a painter and

ceramicist Ceramic art is art made from ceramic materials, including clay. It may take forms including artistic pottery, including tableware, tiles, figurines and other sculpture. As one of the plastic arts, ceramic art is one of the visual arts. Wh ...

, and her poetry and prose regularly appeared in the journal Analogon. Most recently, her work has appeared in English in '' Surrealist Women: an International Anthology'' (Austin:

University of Texas Press The University of Texas Press (or UT Press) is a university press that is part of the University of Texas at Austin. Established in 1950, the Press publishes scholarly books and journals in several areas, including Latin American studies, Texan ...

, 1998) and
Baradla Cave
'
Twisted Spoon Press
2001). Švankmajerová was married to the Surrealist filmmaker

Jan Švankmajer Jan Švankmajer (; born 4 September 1934) is a Czech filmmaker and artist whose work spans several media. He is a self-labeled surrealist known for his stop-motion animations and features, which have greatly influenced other artists such as Ter ...

, with whom she collaborated on such films as '' Alice'', ''

Faust Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust ( 1480–1540). The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a pact with the Devil at a crossroa ...

'', and '' Conspirators of Pleasure''. They had two children, Veronika and Václav, and lived in Prague until her death from breast cancer in 2005.

Filmography

* 1964 – ''The Last Trick'' (orig. ''Poslední trik pana Schwarcewalldea a pana Edgara'') – production assistant, director: Jan Švankmajer * 1967 – ''The Garden'' (org. ''Zahrada'') – costume designer, director: Jan Švankmajer * 1971 – ''Jsouc na řece mlynář jeden'' – designer, director: J. Brdečka * 1976 – Laterna magika: ''Ztracená pohádka'' – designer, director: Jaromil Jireš * 1978 – ''The Ninth Hearth'' (orig. ''Deváté srdce'') – visual effects, director:

Juraj Herz Juraj Herz (4 September 1934 – 8 April 2018) was a Czechoslovak film director, actor, and scene designer, associated with the Czechoslovak New Wave movement of the 1960s. He is best known for his 1969 horror/black comedy '' The Cremator'', of ...

* 1983 – ''The Pit, the Pendulum and Hope'' (orig. ''Kyvadlo, jáma a naděje'') – designer, director: Jan Švankmajer * 1986 – ''Jost Burgi – Demystifikace času a prostoru'' – animator, director: M. Havas * 1987 – Laterna magika: ''Odysseus'' – animator, director: E. Schorm * 1987 – ''Alice'' (orig. ''Něco z Alenky'') – designer, director: Jan Švankmajer * 1994 – ''Lesson Faust'' (orig. ''Lekce Faust'') – designer, director: Jan Švankmajer * 1996 – '' Conspirators of Pleasure'' (orig. ''Spiklenci slasti'') – designer, director: Jan Švankmajer * 2000 – '' Little Otík'' (orig. ''Otesánek'') – designer, director: Jan Švankmajer * 2005 – ''Šílení'' – designer, director: Jan Švankmajer

Books

* ''Baradla Cave'' (Jeskyně Baradla) (1995, Edice Analogon) – Original Czech edition *
Baradla Cave
' (2001
Twisted Spoon Press
) – English translation * ''Anima Animus Animation'' (1998, Slovart Publishers/Arbor Vitae) – Text in English

External links

In English

*
Obituary
in

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

(UK) by

Marcus Williamson Marcus Williamson is a British writer, journalist and campaigner. As an obituarist for ''The Independent'' he has written obituaries of more than 300 subjects, including artists, poets, actors and inventors. Campaigns Phorm In 2009 the AIM-l ...

Obituary
in

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

(UK) by Christopher Masters

In Czech

Zemřela výtvarnice Eva Švankmajerová
BBC Czech
Eva Švankmajerová (25. 9. 1940—20. 10. 2005)
Nekrolog.cz
Galerie online

In Slovak

In French

Eva Svankmajerova, femme qui a ressuscité le surréalisme

Décès de l'artiste surréaliste Eva Svankmajerova
{{DEFAULTSORT:Svankmajerova, Eva 1940 births 2005 deaths People from Prague-East District Czech animators Czech women painters Czech poets Czech women poets Czech ceramists Czech women ceramists Czech surrealist artists Surrealist poets Czech surrealist writers Czech women animators Women surrealist artists Czech women writers 20th-century Czech painters 20th-century Czech women artists 20th-century poets 20th-century women writers Sun in a Net Awards winners Jan Švankmajer Czech animated film directors Czech animated film producers Czech graphic designers Surrealist artists Deaths from cancer in the Czech Republic Deaths from breast cancer