Graphic Art

 The collection of old graphics includes prints from the 15th to the 19th centuries from all over Europe. It has not been built systematically, yet it includes a number of unique prints. Among the oldest are illustrations from the 15th to the 16th centuries (Michael Wolgemuth, Hans Brosamer) and small copperplates by so-called small masters (Barthel Beham, Heinrich Aldegrever, Georg Pencz). There are a greater number of Mannerist reproduction graphics by Dutch and German authors from the 2nd half of the 16th century to the beginning of the 17th century (Cornelius Cort, Philipp Galle, Jan I, Rafael I a Egidius Sadelerové, Jan Pieterszoon Saendredam, Hendrik Goltzius, Pieter de Jode I., Jacob Matham, Jan Muller, Lucas Kilian), excellent etchings by French graphic artist Jacques Callot and landscapes by Duch masters of the 17th century (Jan van de Velde II, Allaert van Everdingen). From the Baroque production of the 17th to the 18th centuries, there are outstanding sets of etchings by Václav Hollar, a native of Prague, hunting scenes by German artist Johann Elias Ridinger, and illustrations by prominent Czech engraver Michael Jindřich Rentz. The collection includes a small, but important collection of prints by Italian masters from the Renaissance to late Baroque (Nicolò Boldrini, Aenea Vico, Giorgio Mantovano Ghisi, Agostino Carracci, Simone Cantarini, Salvatore Rosa, Marco Alvise Pitteri, Pietro Testa and Giovanni Battista Piranesi). Original graphics from the 19th century mainly focus on the Czech-Austrian area (Antonín Machek, Antonín and Josef Mánes, Josef Führich, Bedřich Havránek). A completely unique set presents several dozen Japanese woodblock prints from the end of the 18th century (Utagawa Hiroshige, Utagava Kunijoshi, Utagawa Kunisada, Utagawa Kunichika).

Modern graphics

The collection of modern graphic art was intended to become a compact representation of the genre on the territory of the Czech Republic and the nearby Central European area. It reflects important movements and streams of the period as well as the majority of known techniques, including the experimental ones. The basic collection includes a number of excellent prints by the founders of Czech modern graphic art (Max Švabinský, Zdenka Braunerová, Vojtěch Preissig, Tavík František Šimon, Viktor Stretti, Jaromír Stretti-Zamponi, Emil Orlik, František Bílek, Jan Konůpek and František Kobliha), followed by high quality acquisitions made prior to 1989 (Josef Váchal, Josef Šíma, Josef Čapek, František Tichý, Skupina 42 and Ra groups, Jiří John, Alena Kučerová, Karel Malich, Dalibor Chatrný, Naděžda Plíšková).