November 5, 2016 – March 5, 2017
Opening reception: November 5, 2016
National Czech & Slowak Museum & Library
1400 Inspiration Place SW, Cedar Rapids, IA 52404, USA
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (November 2, 2016) – The original exhibition, Czech Travel Posters from the Lowry Collection opens Saturday November 5, 2016. Both George and Nicholas Lowry, the father-son collectors, will attend the opening reception on Sunday, November 6, discussing the tradition and importance of travel posters within the Czech lands.
Viewers of PBS’s Antiques Roadshow will recognize Nicholas Lowry as a regularly appearing expert. George Lowry was born in Czechoslovakia, escaping on the eve of World War II and Hitler’s occupation of the country. George and Nicholas Lowry own Swann Auction Galleries in New York. Founded in 1941, Swann is the largest auctioneer of Works on Paper in the world, dealing with items ranging from books to photographs to posters. At over 1,000 works, the family owns the largest collection of Czech posters in the world outside the Czech Republic. The collection grew over the last 25 years out of the family’s Czech origins and George and Nicholas’s mutual passion for the images. Carefully curated by Nicholas Lowry, the exhibit Czech Travel Posters from the Lowry Collection showcases 43 travel posters that span several decades, many of them being exhibited for the first time.
For a small country, Czechoslovakia produced a large number of posters, owing to a combination of the country’s rich artistic legacy and strong economic climate. The travel posters are a unique form of advertising showcasing the beauty, intrigue, and architecture of the Czech lands, sometimes urging tourists (in German, English or French) to visit such wonders in Czechoslovakia as Brno or Kutna Hora. Other posters extol the sporting opportunities in Czechoslovakia, such as golf or skiing. A few are in Czech, printed to promote internal tourism and travel.
National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library
The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, is a museum that celebrates life: Czech life, Slovak life and American life. The Museum seeks to inspire people from every background to connect to Czech and Slovak history and culture. Through extraordinary exhibitions and experiences, the Museum tells stories of freedom and identity, family and community, human rights and dignity connecting yesterday with today and tomorrow. The Museum honors those who immigrated to America and worked hard, contributing their skills and vision to the formation of our nation.
For more information, visit www.ncsml.org or call (319) 362-8500.
See more travel posters from Czechoslovakia on Pinterest.
See more posters from Czech Republic on Pinterest.
Save this on Delicious