Kája Saudek facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Kája Saudek |
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Kája Saudek in 2006
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| Born | Karel Saudek 13 May 1935 Prague, Czechoslovakia |
| Died | 25 June 2015 (aged 80) Prague, Czech Republic |
| Nationality | Czech |
| Area(s) | Writer, penciller, inker |
Kája Saudek (born Karel Saudek; May 13, 1935 – June 26, 2015) was a famous Czech artist. He was known for drawing comics and creating graphic art. Many people thought he was one of the best comic artists in the Czech Republic. He was even called the "King of Czech comic books." His twin brother, Jan Saudek, is also a well-known photographer and painter around the world.
Contents
Kája Saudek's Life Story
Early Life and Challenges
Karel and Jan Saudek were born in Prague in 1935. They were twin brothers. Their father was Jewish, and their mother was Czech. When the Nazis took over Czechoslovakia during World War II, their family faced unfair treatment because of their Jewish heritage.
Kája and his brother Jan were sent to a camp in Poland during the war. Many of their Jewish relatives died in other camps. But Kája, Jan, and their father survived the war.
Becoming a Comic Artist
From a young age, Saudek loved American comics. He was first inspired by the cartoons of Walt Disney. After the war, the Soviet Union controlled Czechoslovakia. During this time, Saudek was also influenced by American artists like Robert Crumb and Richard Corben.
He started working as a technical writer. In the 1950s, he worked behind the scenes at the Barrandov Film Studios. In 1966, a film director named Miloš Macourek used Saudek's comic drawings in a movie called (Who Wants to Kill Jessie?).
Facing Challenges with His Art
Saudek's artwork became very popular in Czechoslovakia. In the 1960s, he drew comics for magazines. He also created illustrations for stories by other writers. His art helped shape the popular culture in the country.
Saudek often used his family and friends as models for his comic characters. In 1969, he published part of a comic series called Muriel a andělé (Muriel and Angels). This story was about a young doctor named Muriel. She meets an angel from the future who wants to show her a world without hate or evil.
However, the government officials, called censors, thought the story was politically risky. They stopped it from being published. They felt Saudek's style was too "American." Some critics even called his work "bourgeois kitsch," meaning they thought it was cheap and unrefined. The full Muriel series was finally published in 1991, after the government changed. In 1971, Saudek also helped with the film Čtyři vraždy stačí, drahoušku (Four Murders is enough, Honey) by adding his comic drawings.
In the early 1970s, Saudek worked for a Czechoslovak magazine called Mladý svět. His series Lips Tullian was also banned by the censors. They began to limit his work more and more, eventually banning it completely in the mid-1970s.
From 1976 to 1978, Saudek created a comic series based on Thirty Cases of Major Zeman. This was a popular TV show that supported the government's views. But the Ministry of Interior rejected Saudek's comic version. They thought his style looked too "American" and had too much "shooting." In 1999, after the fall of the Soviet Union, this comic album was finally published. It was called Major Zeman and Six of His Cases.
In 1979, Saudek started working with the Czech Speleological Society. This group helped publish several of his comic series over the next ten years. In the 1980s, Saudek also helped create a popular TV series called Okna vesmíru dokořán.
Later Years and Legacy
In the early 1990s, after the communist government fell in Czechoslovakia, many of Saudek's works were published again.
Saudek continued his work. But in April 2006, he had a serious accident that left him in a coma. He passed away on June 26, 2015.
In September 2009, a newspaper poll ranked three of his works among the top five Czech comics. This shows how important his art was.
His Amazing Works
Film
- Kdo chce zabít Jessii? (Who Wants to Kill Jessie?) (poster and fictional comics in the film)
- Čtyři vraždy stačí, drahoušku (Four Murders is enough, Honey) (animated scenes, fictional comics)
- Okna vesmíru dokořán (illustrations)
Comics
- Honza Hrom (1968) – 7 parts, own story, published in Pop Music Express magazine
- Pepík-Hipík (1969) – 4 parts, published in Čtení pod lavicí magazine
- Muriel a andělé (Muriel and Angels) (1969) – published in 1991
- Muriel a oranžová smrt (Muriel and the Orange Death) (1970) – published in 2009
- Čtverylka (1971) – 22 strips, published in Mladý svět
- Výprava ze Sixie (Expedition from Sixia), (1971–72) – published in Ostravský Kulturní Zpravodaj
- Lips Tullian, nejobávanější náčelník lupičů (Lips Tullian, the Most Redoubtable Leader of Bandits) (1972) published in Mladý svět
- Diamantová šifra (The Diamond Code) (1972) – unfinished, 12 parts, published in Mladá Fronta
- Fantom opery uvádí (Phantom of the Opera Presents) (1973) – published in Mladý svět
- Černý Filip (Black Phillip) (1974) – published in Mladý svět
- Major Zeman (1978–1979) – published in Pionýrská stezka
- Tajemství zlatého koně (The Secret of the Golden Horse) (1979) – published by Czech Speleological Society
- Po stopách sněžného muže (1980) – published by Czech Speleological Society
- Trať se ztrácí ve tmě (1980) – published by Czech Speleological Society
- Stříbrný poklad (Silver Treasure) (1982) – published by Czech Speleological Society
- Studňa (The Well) (1984) – published in Film a Divadlo
- Modrá rokle (The Blue Ravine) (1984) – published by Czech Speleological Society
- Peruánský deník (Peruvian Diary) (1984) – published by Czech Speleological Society
- Konec Sahrbergovy bandy (The End of the Sahrberg Bunch) (1985) – published by Czech Speleological Society
- Ztracený kamarád (The Lost Friend) (1987) – published by Czech Speleological Society
- Arnal a dva dračí zuby (Arnal and Two Dragon Teeth) (1988) – published by Czech Speleological Society
- Jeskyně Saturn (The Saturn Cave) (1990–1991) – published by Czech Speleological Society
Where His Art Was Shown
Saudek's art was shown in over 300 solo exhibitions in Czechoslovakia and other countries. His drawings are part of important Czech art collections.
- 1997 – Konstanz, Rosengarten Museum. "Czech Posters of the '60s from the Collections of the Moravian Gallery Brno"
- 2002 – Prague, Czech Museum of Visual Arts. "Czech Comics (?) and Visual Arts"
- 2003 – Prague, Mánes. "Film Poster"
- 2009 – Prague, Czech Center. Kaja Saudek and '60s (Nov. 2009-Jan. 2010)
See also
In Spanish: Kája Saudek para niños
