History and content of the Lidice collection

In 1966, as part of the "Lidice Shall Live" project, an English doctor, Sir Barnett Stross, appealed to artists around the world to donate exhibits for a dedicated Lidice collection. This collection would expand to become the museum of fine arts in Lidice and to symbolize the solidarity of artists with the tragedy of Lidice.

Over the years the collection has been open to the the public on several occasions, principally in connection with important anniversaries of the tragedy. The display format has been varied to reflect cultural and political developments nationally. We are now pleased to announce that the Lidice collection has been returned after being administered by the Central Bohemian Gallery and the Czech Museum of Fine Arts from 1967 to 2003. After 37 years absence the collection has been housed in a purpose-built venue, commensurate with its status and original concept.

Visitors to the Lidice Memorial can now, for the first time, enjoy a collection as diverse in concept as in execution, a collection which encompasses a wide range of artistic styles and disciplines.

The collection comprises 415 individual exhibits by artists from thirty countries: Algeria, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Ceylon, former Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic and Slovakia), Chile, Egypt, Finland, France, The Netherlands, India, Italy, Cambodia, Columbia, Cyprus, Luxemburg, Hungary, Mexico, Germany, Norway, Pakistan, Austria, Greece, former United Republic of Arabia, former Soviet Union, Sweden, Uruguay and Great Britain (Including works by Peter Blake, Roman Opalka, Leopold Survage, Emilio Vedova, Renato Guttuso or Tamaya).

Donations from German artists were called for in 1967 by German curator René Block, who went on to assemble more exhibits in 1996. The most valuable item in this part of the Lidice collection is a painting by Gerhard Richter „Onkel Rudi“ which is currently on loan at prestigious global exhibitions. Our German artists include, among others, Joseph Beuys, Jorg Immendorf, C.O. Paeffgen, Jochen Gerz, Wolf Vostell and Rosemarie Trockel.

A comprehensive collection of Czech Artists (Jan Smetana, Karel Souček, Vojtěch Tittelbach, Václav Kiml, Pravoslav Kotík, František Gross, Jitka a Květa Válas, František Foltýn, František Mertl, Olbram Zoubek, František Jiroudek, V. V. Novák, Vincenc Beneš, Cyril Bouda, Karel Svolinský, Adolf Hoffmeister, Josef Jíra and others) deserves a special mention.

The exhibition now comprises 415 individual exhibits.

Permanent exhibition
Internationally renowned sculptor Professor Stanislav Kolíbal, of the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague, has carefully selected 94 exhibits from around the world. These form a permanent exhibition which may be visited in the undercroft of the Lidice Gallery. Works which are not currently exhibited have been transferred to safe storage in a newly acquired repository.

Since its inception in 2003, when the permanent exhibition was opened to the public for the first time, its reputation has spread far and wide. In acquiring an international following it can be said that the gallery has fulfilled its original aim: the remembrance of Lidice victims is passed on to future generations and with it the moral imperative to resist despotism in all forms.

Mgr. Ivona Kasalická, Curator of the Lidice collection

• Arcticle about Lidice Collection, October 2008 (here)
• Central Registry of Collections (here)