Herbert Tobias (*1928 – †1982)

Actually, I do not know how I should begin. I am on the trip to Prague again (Sunday 24, 2010). This time I am going by train through the white snow cowered plains of my country. In spite of that, my journey could be different, to Vienna shopping. However, it was canceled and I traveled how I initially planned.

Today’s morning I have woke up very fast and left my home in deep darkness and bitter cold outside. There is some supermarket shopping car in front of our house?! Tobacco shop is closed and so I do not buy some newspaper. Some slightly drunk gambler is coming out from a gambling club and we are passing each other.

Finally, I am sitting in Eurocity train Carl Maria von Weber. Surprisingly, I am alone in the first class coach. Is that due to the global crisis? No, I think, it is not. Only red sun shining at sunrise on the horizon is driving me to the reality.

We are passing the train stop called Bezpráví (Injustice) and a lonely man there and some kilometers another stop (Uhersko). So we arrived to the city of the gingerbreads – Pardubice.

We have stopped unexpected in some field again, lost between a civilization and nobody. There are only light, shadows in space and reflections on snow that evoke some atmosphere that I had first time if I had seen the pictures of Herbert Tobias on his website. And now, I am going to visit his exhibition.

However, reality has overcome all my expectations. The retrospective exhibition of his 150 pictures from his the best era (50’s and 60’ of 20th century) is to see in Prague in Gallery Rudolfinum till March 28. It is hard to describe it. Each picture is another story that presses you to think about it, not only to run through the exhibition without any think. Those are the pictures of Andreas Baader, young Klaus Kinski, Amanda Lear, playing children in Berlin 50’s or fashionable pictures in Berlin ruins right to male portraits.

It is not possible to name all, it just must be seen. I fully recommend this!

(Sources: Gallery Rudolfinum, Herbert Tobias)