About the Author of Photographs and Graphics
Over the years the author has employed visual communication in a number of professions.He has photographed and prepared publications as a guide, manager, university teacher, researcher, sales representative and management trainer. He attended a basic school of the arts, taking a course on artistic photography taught by the Brno artist Michal Vystavěl. He advanced to a professional level in the field thanks to the world-famous british photographer Derek Bayes (Aspect Picture Library). Through promotion and the preparation of publications dealing with management education, in particular for Cizner Consulting®, he gained experience with graphic digital processing.
About the Book
The author for this book created 270 photographs from 26 cities of cultural importance in the Czech Republic. The chapters and photographs are clearly arranged with a view to the events depicted, topographic features and aesthetic concerns. The author’s style is personal, marked with a touch of gentle humour and a sense of empathy for the people in the photos and the stories they tell.
Most of the photos record the period when people in the Czech Republic wore original hand-made face masks in public. You could meet with this phenomenon en masse in the streets from the end of April to June 2020; it was never repeated. To understand the legal background to what influenced the photos, see the “Overview of anti-Coronavirus contingency measures”. We had had no experience with face masks in the Czech Republic. It was enlightening to see how we appreciated that it is considerate to wear a face mask when surrounded by infection and that it isn’t disgraceful to help someone wearing one.
The book is intended for readers of all ages and interests. It can serve as inspiration for planning a trip or satisfying an interest in the culture and history of the Czech Republic. The complete text is in both Czech and English, making the book an excellent gift. You have in your hands an illustrated guidebook as well as a document on an important turning point - a crisis that in all likelihood heralds humanity moving into a new era. You can return to the photographs in the guide many times, each time discovering something new - for example a revealing sign in the background. Start browsing!
The book can be viewed and purchased in bookstores all over the Czech Republic. It is usually placed among books about the Czech Republic or in the Art - Photography section.
Palác knih Luxor, Václavskíé náměstí 41, Praha (4.1.2023)
Knihy Dobrovský, Brno - Joštova 6 (10.3.2023)
Kanzelsberger, Masarykova 6 v Brně (4.5.2023)
The National ISBN Agency in the Czech Republic assigned the book the number 978-80-11-02281-5. The MVK Ostrava catalogue record is based on the cataloguing of the National Library of the Czech Republic (see bellow).
The libraries in Czech Republic use in addition other searching words: Lifestyle everyday life, Values, Sociology of culture, Cultural life, Geography of the Czech Republic and Slovakia, Maps.
The Book Launch
The book launch took place on 20 April 2023 in the Academia bookstore on Svobody Square in Brno. Photo: Jakub Balák (1.), Ludmila Pernicová (2. - 5.).
“Godfathers” of the book from left to right: Jan Grygar, Don Sparling, Roman Wenzel
Jan Grygar - the longest active current soloist of the National Theatre in Brno, he has been working with Cizner Consulting for over 20 years
Don Sparling - Canadian, working for 50 years in Brno, author and co-author of textbooks on English, native english translation of the launched book
Roman Wenzel, academic sculptor, author of sculptures in public spaces, art review of the book