Josef Paleček

* 1932, Jihlava

Studied at the Chair of Arts of the Pedagogical Faculty of Charles University in Prague under Professors Martin Salcman, Cyril Bouda and Karel Lidický.

He devotes himself to painting drawing, free graphic and illustrations. He cooperates with architects, makes tapestry and murals. He has created the decor for several animated films and children's television serials.

He has exhibited his pictures in his own country and abroad. (Tokyo, New York, Addis Abeba, Paris, Zurich, Montreal, Munich, Nuremberg, Grevenbroich, Hamburg, Kiel, Vienna, Bologne, Venice, Barcelona, Madrid, Mexico City...)

Her pictures and illustrations were inspiration for master engraver Marián Staněk.

HOLIDAYS 3134
“We used to go to sea to Croatia. We lived at a family with four children who told us about their interesting grandfather, an ex-marine, nowadays a lighthouse guard somewhere on a distant island. We imagined how beautiful it may be to visit him together unexpectedly. It seemed to us little adventurous to sail for the visit on an ordinary fisherman boat, so we were making up all sorts of things. When I got down to illustrate a book about an island onto which access was prohibited to grumpy and grouchy adults and onto which only cheerful kids were allowed, I painted my idea of beautiful holidays.”

DREAMING 3106 and 2732/1
„Once toward night – it was in winter – we were coming back by train from a visit to friends. When we were passing by a familiar pond, we saw a caught swan on its frozen surface. Our little daughter felt so sorry for it that we had to promise her to return to that place the next day and to try to free the swan from the icy cover. In the morning we went by car to the pond. Several children were ice skating there but there was no swan there. We were skating for the whole morning happy that someone had saved the swan. Veronika had a very restless night and she told us in the morning what she had been dreaming of. The swan’s girlfriends flew to the frozen swan, breathing they melted the ice and all together they flew away. I liked that dream very much. After some time, I painted this picture.”