Vitezslav Fleissig

Vitezslav Fleissig: During the twentieth century one of the most active centers for ex-libris art was Czechoslovakia. Of the many fine Czech artists who devoted themselves to this area, Vitezslav Fleissig was one of the most accomplished. From approximately 1920 to 1950 his ex-libris art was exhibited internationally and he received many commissions from both Europe and America.

Vitezslav Fleissig studied art techniques in his native Prague at the Graficke Skole. During his career he created almost six hundred original ex libris works of art. His earlier works in this medium were most often executed in either linocut or woodcut. After the Second World War, however, Vitezslav Fleissig worked almost exclusively in etching, producing works in both hard and soft grounds. Today his art is included in such collections as the Muzeum Umeni Olomouc.

This original etching hails from a 1950 portfolio entitled, "16 Ex-Libris Dell’Artista Incisore Cecoslovacco Vitezslav Fleissig", which was published in Milan by Luigi Filippo Bolaffio. Bolaffio was a leading Italian arts and ex-libris publisher and he commissioned Fleissig for sixteen ex-libris etchings which were printed in signed editions of 100 impressions. Each of these etchings (including this original example) bear the stamp of Bolaffio on the verso as well as another stamp bearing the artist’s name and the medium -- “aquaforte originale”. Other ex-libris plates in the portfolio were etched for such leading Italian collectors as Luigi Filippo Bolaffio, Carlo d'Alessio, Dino Bonardi and Dr. Anna Maria Pagliana as well as for American collectors such as Elizabeth Watson Diamond.

The subject of Fleissig's original etching is the Dance of Death, a theme well represented in the history of Western art. Here, Death is dressed as a jester and most festively dressed for the occasion. The woman, mostly undressed, may not know the true identity of her dancing partner. During the mediaeval and Renaissance era, jesters provided entertainment by performing as fools, buffoons, acrobats, jugglers, musicians, storytellers and the like. They dressed in eccentric and bizarre costumes to attract attention often performing at fairs, markets, theatre, and Noble courts.

Ex-Libris engravings, etchings and woodcuts date as far back as the mid fifteenth century. Their function was initially quite utilitarian as miniature prints or stamps used to signify the ownership of books. As private libraries and their owners gained more wealth and prestige, however, so did their ex-libris bookplates. Pictorial imagery became as important as the wording and titles and the finished work of art came to stand as the owner’s claim to posterity. Before long, famous artists were commissioned by prominent collectors to make their ex-libris designs and during the centuries such masters as Durer, Holbein, Manet, Toulouse-Lautrec and Rockwell Kent all contributed significantly to this great form of art.

The golden age for the ex-libris print, however, occurred during the early twentieth century, particularly in the Art Deco decades the 1920’s and 1930’s. Collecting ex-libris etchings and wood engravings reached such a peak during this time that many artists in Europe and America devoted themselves almost exclusively to this area. In both Europe and America many artists gained international reputations for their ex-libris art and were constantly commissioned by book collectors around the world.