To leave for France, as Vera Linhartová wrote, was to leave “her Bohemian pond” for the ocean.Following the establishment of the communist regime in February 1948, and the Soviet invasion of August 1968, Paris became a safe haven for many. Some, like Alfons Mucha, stayed in Paris for long periods before returning to Czechoslovakia. Others only stayed for short spells, as in the case of legendary artists František Tichý and Jan Zrzavý.

Finally, there were those who settled permanently in France following the dramatic historical events that tore Central Europe apart: František Kupka, Josef Šíma, Toyen and Jindřich Heisler, joined by younger ones – Otto Mizera or Jan Krížek – were among those who stayed, as were, after 1968, Irena Dedicova, Jirí Kolár, Bela Kolárová and many others.

It is interesting to note that many Francophiles remained fascinated by their stay or by French influences: this was the case for František Foltýn, Adolf Hoffmeister, František Muzika, Ladislav Novak… Many of the artists presented here actively participated in the creative effervescence they encountered in Paris, and their contribution to certain avant- garde movements was fundamental, whether Cubism, Abstraction-Création, Surrealism or the Grand Jeu. The major retrospectives devoted to Kupka and Toyen bear witness to this. The most appreciated Czech artists often have a “French history”. The Prague-Paris exhibition pays tribute to them here.