| Abstrakt: |
The finding in Olomouc of a hitherto unknown private archive of Rudolf Michalik (1901–1993), an anthroposophical and abstract-inclined painter of the first half of the 20th century, presents in particular new aspects of this interesting artistic figure from inter-war Olomouc. This set of documents is stored in the Historical Archive of the Regional Museum in Olomouc and has yet to be the subject of research. In the context of art history, such a finding not only leads to reflection about the biographical method as a way of learning about the past, but also offers an opportunity to explore the phenomenon of the artist’s archive. Against a background of ties and contacts it also permits the reconstruction of the period context and in this respect provides a genuinely symptomatic insight into the colourful Czech-GermanJewish melting pot of Olomouc, which experienced one of the most interesting periods of its cultural history between the two world wars. This „archive“ of Rudolf Michalik from the Museum of National History in Olomouc vividly informs us about this comprehensively interconnected structure of personal, artistic and institutional crossovers between the two ethnic groups. Overall, this material shows in particular the rich networks of its ties, both within the Czech Lands, in the different language milieux, but also abroad. At the same time, ties to German personalities and artists from the Czech Lands, especially from the Metznerbund and Prager Secession circles, clearly predominate. At the same time, the documents also clearly depict the artistic existence and „life strategies“ of an artist in the city environment, oscillating between the identity of the local centre and the periphery. Evidence from this „archive“ can be instrumental in helping to supplement our current knowledge of the painter, but it can also be of more general significance – both in the artistic and cultural context of the 1920s and 1930s and in our view of Michalik as a symptomatic personality, with the wide range of his contacts, ambitions, varied interests and various commissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
