Press Release Fun – Peter Sis: Cartography of the Mind

IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Mary Van Akin
(646) 307-5210 | Mary.VanAkin@macmillan.com

Czech Center New York Presents Exhibition of the Work of Acclaimed Artist, Illustrator, Author, and Filmmaker Peter Sís

Peter Sís: Cartography of the Mind

Peter Sís: Cartography of the Mind on View May 8 through September 2, 2014
Media Preview and Opening Reception
Wednesday, May 7, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Czech Center New York at the Bohemian National Hall
321 E 73rd Street, New York, NY 10021

Some fifty works by the internationally-acclaimed artist, illustrator, author and filmmaker, Peter Sís, will be on view in the exhibition Peter Sís: Cartography of the Mind at the Czech Center New York May 8 through September 2, 2014.

Featuring drawings, watercolors and gouaches drawn from the artist’s extensive collection, Cartography of the Mind presents Sís’s renderings depicting man’s unending quest for discovery. That discovery takes place in the realm of science through works from several books, authored and illustrated by Sís, including Starry Messenger: Galileo (Farrar, Straus and Giroux,1996), about scientist and astronomer Galileo, The Tree of Life (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2003) that explores the life of naturalist and thinker Charles Darwin.

Also on view will be works from books that illustrate courageous travels through uncharted territories and activities including Follow the Dream: The Story of Christopher Columbus (Knopf Young Readers, l991); A Small Tall Tale From The Far Far North (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2001), a book about the relatively unknown Czech explorer, Jan Welzl, that was named The New York Times Best Illustrated Book of the Year; Tibet Through The Red Box (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1998), a magical retelling of a personal story of a father and son; and his most recent book, The Pilot and the Little Prince: The Life of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2014), that celebrates the author of the classic The Little Prince. An exhibition of Saint-Exupéry’s original manuscript pages for The Little Prince titled The Little Prince: A New York Story is on view through April 27 at the Morgan Library & Museum. In connection, Peter Sís will appear at the Morgan on Tuesday, April 22, at 6:30 p.m. to talk about his new book.

“In all of this work, Sís first carries out extensive research about the subject in order to assure correct factual information. He then presents this information with illustrations of unprecedented beauty and imagination. His books are intended for adults and children alike, for all those for whom the narrative in the arts, be it visual or verbal, can be seen as the way to unbridled aesthetic enrichment,” states the curator of the exhibition Charlotta Kotik.

Peter Sís was born in Czechoslovakia, where he studied art and filmmaking. He continued his studies at the Royal College of Art in London and moved to United States in l982. He is an author and illustrator of nearly thirty books and has illustrated many other publications by various authors. Sís is a recipient of the prestigious McArthur Fellowship, the Hans Christian Foundation Award for Illustration, the Caldecott Honor Book Awards, and numerous others honors and awards. In addition, he has contributed more than one thousand drawings to The New York Times Book Review and his illustrations have appeared in such publications as Time magazine, The Atlantic Monthly, Newsweek, and Esquire. His work as a filmmaker has also garnered awards including the Golden Bear Award at the West Berlin Film Festival, the Grand Prix Toronto, and the CINE Golden Eagle Award.

Charlotta Kotik, a native of Prague, has organized more than one hundred museum exhibitions. From 1992 to 2007, she was Curator and Chair of the Contemporary Art Department at the Brooklyn Museum. Ms. Kotik served as the United States commissioner for the Venice Biennale in 1993 where she presented works by Louise Bourgeois. Presently, she works as a writer, lecturer, independent curator, and teaches at the School of Visual Arts in New York City.

Peter Sís: Cartography of the Mind is organized by the Czech Center New York and Bohemian Benevolent & Literary Association in collaboration with Farrar, Straus and Giroux, an imprint of Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group, New York; Ryan Lee Gallery, New York; Labyrinth Publishers, Prague; and the Consulate General of the Czech Republic in New York.

Established in 1995, the Czech Center New York is a meeting place for Czech and local culture, a place where artists and professionals, Czech and non-Czech alike, can get to know each other and share their work. While the Center’s focus is on contemporary Czech artists, the organization is committed to the support of new international projects and is a welcoming place for all ideas that address current cultural or social issues.

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