Toyen: The Dreaming Rebel

Toyen is one of the most original and best-known twentieth-century Czech artists; she also rose to fame in her own lifetime in France, which became her permanent home in 1947. All over the world her distinct oeuvre and fresh attitudes have been attracting ever-growing interest both in her and her work, yet opportunities to see it in its entirety have been scarce.

The last large exhibition of Toyen’s work was held in Prague in 2000 and then in Saint-Etienne, France two years later. It is surprising that there has never been a broad retrospective in Paris, and Toyen remains almost unknown in Germany. Spearheaded by three prestigious institutions ⁠–⁠ National Gallery Prague, Hamburger Kunsthalle and Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris ⁠–⁠ this international project seeks to present her oeuvre to European audiences as fully as possible with three exhibitions and a detailed catalogue published in four different language versions.

The first stage takes place in Prague’s Waldstein Riding School. The exhibition is conceived chronologically and divided into time-specific parts to mirror key periods of Toyen’s career. It likewise highlights Toyen’s recurring signature themes such as eroticism and alchemy. It also showcases her extensive work in illustration in addition to her paintings and drawings. Importance is also given to Toyen’s crucial collaborations with her friends from the Prague and Paris Surrealist groups ⁠–⁠ painters and poets such as Jindřich Štyrský, Jindřich Heisler, André Breton, Benjamin Péret, Radovan Ivsic, and Annie Le Brun.

The artworks are loaned from Czech and European museums and private collections.