JOŽA ÚPRKA - DÍVKA V KROJI

Joža Uprka

He was born on 25 October 1861 in Kněžduba in Moravia and died on 12 January 1940 in Hroznová Lhota. Painter, graphic designer. He went to the school in Strážnice, but only to the quart. Then he enrolled in Olomouc for the "German Teaching Institute", but from there he moved to the Slavonic Gymnasium in Olomouc. After finishing grammar school, he continued his studies at the Prague Academy and then at the Munich Academy. During his studies he founded, together with other academics, the association "Škréta". From April 1885 Joža Uprka was the chairman of the association. They also started publishing their own magazine called "Palette". After his studies, he returned to his native region around Hroznová Lhota. This is where his extensive work originated. Uprka's work was based on his native region, with festivals, customs, ceremonies and everyday life of the local people. He admired the beauty of folk costumes. In 1894 he completed a large painting "Pilgrimage at St. Anthony" and began working on his later most famous painting "Ride of the Kings". However, this was preceded by many watercolor and oil studies, which cost him a lot of money. But his friends supported him at work. They advised him to exhibit his painting "Pilgrimage at St. Antony" in Prague's Topic Salon, as the painting had received a high award at the Paris Salon - Mention honorable the year before. The picture was noticed by a great art expert, Swiss journalist William Ritter, who then wrote about a Moravian artist in Swiss, French, German, Italian and English magazines. Finally, in 1895, the Czech Academy awarded Joža Uprka the second gold annual medal, for the painting "Pilgrimage at St. Anthony". In 1897, Uprka painted his most famous painting, The Ride of the Kings, in two versions. The second version is appreciated by experts as his best work. (www.hroznovalhota.cz)