Teige and harlequin

Karel Teige (and the 20th century) was twenty years old when he and his equally young friends formulated the programme for the Devětsil artistic union. They all felt that time, which had previously been stuck in the trenches of the “Great War”, was moving again: Poetism was born, later Surrealism, and collections of poetry, paintings, theatre, and architecture emerged in quick succession… This biographical collage about the prominent Czech critic and art theorist, artist and translator tells not only his personal story, but also the history of the entire Czech interwar avant-garde. Karel Teige’s life path crossed with figures such as Biebl, Halas, Nezval, Seifert, Voskovec, Werich, Funke, Breton, Krejcar, Mayakovsky, Kokoschka, Štyrský, Toyen, Jakobson, Vančura and many, many others. And also with the women who loved, supported, and inspired him. For most of his life, he identified with communist ideology. Had it not been for his premature death, he would most likely have shared the fate of his friend Záviš Kalandra and ended up on the gallows. As always, Jiří Kamen has built his book on a thorough study of all available sources and literature, so even the most incredible plot twists and details are supported by facts.