Jiří Šalamoun is one of the most important Czech illustrators of the second half of the 20th century.
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With drawings, which are characterized by playfulness, acronym and sarcasm, he adorned books by world authors such as The Pickwick Club Chronicle, The Last of the Mohicans, Mr. Tau and a Thousand Miracles, Tracy’s Tiger or Tolkien’s The Hobbit or The Way There and Back.
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He created an unforgettable character for children of the talking Maxips Fík, whom they saw in cartoons directed by Václav Bedřich.
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Solomon was the artist of a number of other animated films, creating dozens of free lithographs and posters. He has also published two collections of poems and one collection of dream records.
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Born in 1935 in Prague, Solomon studied graphic design at the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague and the University of Graphic Arts and Book Arts in Leipzig.
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As a teacher, he taught in America and Europe, and for 14 years he ran the Illustration and Graphics Studio at the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague. He has won many Czech and foreign awards for book illustrations.
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Solomon not only illustrated the books, but also graphically edited and created posters for films or theater performances.
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Last year, the Kampa Museum hosted a large exhibition of Jiří Šalamoun’s works.
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