"my underground" - A Family Album by Abbé J. Libánský

This book resembles in its concept a "foto album" - a fascinating collection of subjective pictures without chronological order and claim to being complete.

During the time of the 60ies till the end of the supremacy of the communist party the so called “underground“ had a an important impact on the cultural life and the political development of the former Czechoslovakia. The imprisonment of members of the Rock group “The Plastic People” and other protagonists of this underground scene lead for example to the founding of the “Charta 77”. After the “Velvet revolution” 1989 various members of the former prosecuted scene found themselves in central positions of government and public life, where they play an important part till now. In the conscious of the international (and national) public the 70ies and 80ies in the former Czechoslovakia show a picture of a cheerless and for the “active scene” permanently menacing time. Whoever agitated beyond the official structures, whoever tried to articulate him- or herself freely or was involved in - for the government forbidden - cultural activities, had to cope with house searches, imprisonment and constant harassments of the state police. It is the aim of the artist to show that “normal life” was still possible despite all the pressure from outside.
The book resembles in its concept a “family album”: one part consists of art photos (portraits, scenes of concerts and events, still lives), the other part shows hundreds of variously mixed pictures (excursions and trips, children’s parties, concerts and rehearsals, refurnishments and renovations of private houses, insights into the Private and the daily life of the scene). Certainly this book asserts no claims of completeness whatsoever. The pictures are as personally and subjective as are all private photos of every photographer.
The condition of the negatives is not always the best as they, as we ourselves, did not always survive the hide and seek play with the police unharmed . And the negatives are, as we ourselves, about 30 years older now.
The accompanying texts in Czech, German and English are written by prominent activist of the underground of this time, some of which still play a central and important role in the Czech society today.

related Events