/ 21 October 2005

Czech surrealist painter dies

The Czech surrealist painter, poet and sculptress Eva Svankmajerova has died aged 65, the CTK news agency quoted a friend of her family as saying.

The artist joined the surrealist movement in the early 1970s, when she was known for her Emancipation Cycle, variations on famous paintings in which the female figures had been replaced with men.

Svankmajerova also made puppets and designed sets, leaving her mark on the films of her husband and fellow surrealist Jan Svankmajer, such as Alice (1987), Faust (1994), Conspirators of Pleasure (1996) and Greedy Guts (2000) — winner of the 2001 Lion prize, the Czech equivalent to the Oscars.

A retrospective exhibition of the couple’s work was held last year at Prague Castle. — Sapa-AFP