Nezval, Vítězslav. Pantomima: 1922–1924. A Fine Association Copy Inscribed to Liberated Theatre Actress Nina Balcarová

Prague: Devětsil, 1924.

24.5 × 16 cm. Rebound in modern half blue cloth over marbled boards, gilt-lettered spine. Original illustrated front wrapper preserved and bound in at the rear. Good to very good condition. Warm presentation inscription by Vítězslav Nezval on the half-title, dated Prague, 22 July 1927, to Nina Balcarová, actress of the Osvobozené divadlo (Liberated Theatre) and noted left-wing cultural activist.

A landmark publication of the Czech avant-garde and one of the defining books of the Devětsil movement. Pantomima collects Nezval's pioneering poetist works written between 1922 and 1924, including the celebrated typographical poem Abeceda, experimental visual poetry, and the celebrated Nezvalově pantomimě, accompanied by an original musical score composed by Jiří Svoboda. The volume embodies Devětsil's ideal of the synthesis of poetry, typography, music, theatre, and the visual arts.

The book is richly illustrated with bold geometric compositions by Jindřich Štyrský, among his earliest and most important book illustrations. His constructivist-inspired designs, integrated with the innovative typography, make Pantomima one of the masterpieces of Czech interwar book design and an essential document of Poetism.

The recipient, Nina Balcarová, belonged to the artistic circle surrounding Prague's legendary Liberated Theatre (Osvobozené divadlo) and was active in leftist cultural and political circles during the 1920s. Nezval himself would soon become closely associated with the theatre through his collaborations with Jiří Voskovec, Jan Werich, and Jaroslav Ježek, making the inscription an appealing association copy linking one of the central figures of Czech Poetism with the theatrical milieu that helped define the Czech avant-garde.

Fine condition. Inbound wrapper with small crease to lower corner.