Fleeing from the confines of communism in Czechoslovakia, artists Dušan and Voitre Marek embarked across the seas to Australia. Arriving in Adelaide in 1948, they immediately set into motion a surge of new ideas and controversies that challenged the conventions of Australian art. This first major survey of the art of these Czech-Australian brothers presents the breadth of their investigations. Highlights include the artists’ voyage paintings created during their long sea journey from Europe to Australia and Dušan’s pioneering surrealist films.
Dušan Marek, Australia, 1926-1993, Perpetuum mobile, 1948, SS Charlton Sovereign, oil on board, 121.7 × 91.2cm. South Australian Government Grant 1972, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide. © and courtesy Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide
Voitre Marek, Australia (1919-1999), My Gibraltar, 1948, on board the SS Charlton Sovereign, oil on board, 29 × 20.5cm. d’Auvergne Boxall Bequest Fund 1996, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide. © Estate of Voitre Marek. Courtesy Art Gallery of South Australia
Art Gallery of South Australia
19 June to 12 September 2021
Adelaide
