HOFMAN, Vlastislav – F. M. DOSTOYEVSKY 1917

HOFMAN, Vlastislav – F. M. DOSTOYEVSKY Prague: Fr. Borový, 1917 (drawings completed December 1916). Elephant folio (48 × 34 cm). Introduction by Jan Bartoš (13 pp.), table of contents, and 30 full-page lithographs after drawings by Hofman. Portfolio containing 30 lithographed portrait studies of Dostoevsky and characters from novels such as The Brothers Karamazov and The Idiot. An important early statement of Hofman’s expressionist-cubist style, with boldly faceted forms and psychological intensity. This portfolio of Hofman’s early expressionist-cubist drawings provoked significant discussion in contemporary art circles. The works were first exhibited at the bookshop and print room of the publisher Jan Štenc to a positive reception, but subsequently rejected by the conservative jury of the Mánes Gallery as “merely experimental.” Critic Václav Nebeský attacked their theoretical basis, while the younger artist Alois Wachsmann (later a member of the Devětsil group) defended them, praising Hofman’s ability to translate Dostoevsky’s ideas into a new visual language without betraying their spirit. The series also attracted international attention: in 1917 the German weekly Die Aktion reproduced Hofman’s portraits, including a cover image. Loosely inserted in original wrappers as issued; Original folder worn with tears at the hinges but without loss; contents clean and well preserved. Inv.