Lives. Artists from the Pen of Karel van Mander

• EXHIBITION: Lives. Artists from the Pen of Karel van Mander
• DATE: 09 10 2025 – 11 01 2026
• VENUE: Olomouc Museum of Art
• BUILDING: Museum of Modern Art, Picture Gallery
• AUTHOR OF THE CONCEPT AND CURATOR: Miroslav Kindl
• ACCOMPAYING PROGRAMME: David Hrbek, Denisa Tessenyi
• GRAPHIC DESIGN: Jan Zikmund
• CONSERVATION: Anna Píšťková
• TRANSLATION: Peter Williams
• LOANS BY: Arcibiskupství olomoucké; Collet Prague, Mgr. Lucia Lettenmayerová; Galerie výtvarného umění v Ostravě; Galerie Zlatohlávek; Ing. Jaroslav Kubíček; Kolowratové Rychnov nad Kněžnou; Moravská galerie v Brně; Szépmüvészeti Múzeum Budapest; Muzeum umění Olomouc; Národní galerie v Praze; Národní památkový ústav; Obrazárna pražského hradu; Slezské zemské muzeum v Opavě; Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden; Vědecká knihovna v Olomouci

The Olomouc Museum of Art brings an exhibition of Dutch painting from the 15th and 16th centuries. With a certain degree of exaggeration, one of the artists of that time, Karel van Mander (1548–1606), is the co-author of the exhibition, too. In his day, he was and still is one of the most respected Dutch painters. His works are part of the exhibitions of older Dutch art in major museums and galleries around the world. However, he is truly exceptional as the author of Het Schilder-Boeck (The Book of Painting), first published in 1604, in which he provided key information about the lives and works of his predecessors and contemporaries.

“The exhibition and the selection of artists are similar to the narrative of van Mander’s publication,” explains curator Miroslav Kindl. “Through paintings, drawings, prints and books, it presents not only important works of Dutch painting from the 15th and 16th centuries, but also the principles of early modern art collecting and the intellectual world of the first monographers.”

Visitors will see masterpieces of the Dutch Renaissance from leading European museums and galleries by artists such as Rogier van der Weyden, Quentin Massijs, Jan Brueghel the Elder, Frans Floris, Bartholomeus Spranger, Cornelis van Haarlem, and other artists mentioned by van Mander and often known thanks to him. However, it will not only be a showcase of important artists, but also an exploration of society and the cultural and literary history of the early modern period, outlined through excerpts from books and graphic prints.

In his youth, Karel van Mander gained experience in Italy, but upon his return, like thousands of other non-Catholics, he was forced to leave his native Spanish Netherlands (now Belgium) and go into exile in the newly formed Protestant United Provinces of the Netherlands. In prosperous Haarlem, he became one of the most important driving forces of intellectual and cultural life. In addition to painting, he translated from French and wrote poems, songs, and plays. However, he is best known as the “Dutch Vasari,” as he was inspired to write The Book of Painting by the Italian painter and architect Giorgio Vasari (1511–1574), who published an encyclopaedia of the best local painters, sculptors, and architects in 1550

A representative, richly illustrated catalog has been published to accompany the exhibition, presenting a comprehensive overview of the Book of Painters and its author, Karel van Mander. It also includes profiles and analyses of selected works by twenty-four Dutch and Upper German painters.

AI GUIDE

Visitors to the exhibition will be able to use the Cabinet of Wonders voice guide, which will not only familiarize them with the individual stops, but thanks to integrated artificial intelligence, it can also answer any questions they may have. It will be based primarily on the publication accompanying the exhibition, so the answers should be unbiased and insightful. Thanks to the AI connection, visitors can communicate in ten European languages.

FIRST TRANSLATION INTO CZECH

Van Mander’s work Het Schilder-Boeck was and still is the basis for the professional work of art historians, without losing its appeal to the lay public. The book has been translated into most European and some non-European languages. It is only now being published in Czech thanks to translators from Dutch – Zuzana Henešová and Ivana Svobodová, with expert commentary by art historian Miroslav Kindl. Together, they have prepared the Czech edition of van Mander’s fourth book, dedicated to Dutch and German painters, for the Argo publishing house.

“Reading about Dutch painting and its prominent figures is primarily a source of detailed facts about the art of the time, but it also provides a glimpse into the everyday lives of individuals in the arts and society as a whole, which makes the texts truly engaging reading,” said Zuzana Henešová.