Alba – nový knižní fenomén
Picture books, a new book phenomenon

Summary/Abstract: The creative genesis of picture book is of particular interest since the authors are usually visual artists. The format, typography, graphics and illustrations are also of importance as they take the form of a book, artefacts. They have an aesthetic appeal and at the same time are not ashamed to be educational and open to dialogue. They are able to capture the imagination of children as well as more demanding adults and are thus not merely literature for children and young people. The study demonstrates how it is useless to raise doubts concerning whether picture books are actually literature, just as their approachability in terms of genre and the multiplicity of the connections between picture and text should not be an issue. On the contrary, the intertextuality and intericonicness are their distinct features. The projects of František Skála are used as examples of how the author works with comics, indicating a path toward conceptuality and photography montages. The picture books of Petr Sís emphasise meticulousness in studying earlier documents. Sís is fascinated by old engravings and is inspired by them in his detailed drawing techniques. There are also references to his film screenplay training. The greatest attention is paid to Pavel Čech and his stories of friendship, ideals and the dreams and desire of both boys and older men. Of interest is not only the curly-haired boy who bears a resemblance to the author himself and also recalls figures from Jiří Trnka, but also the mysterious landscape, the fictional world, the time and space movement, and finally the subjects and details which are related to both the external and internal world of humans and which continually influence us.

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