About Miloslav Troup
Miloslav Troup is one of the artists who, through their artwork, have significantly connected the Czech and French movements. Pierre Descargues, an eminent French art critic and biographer of George Braque, said: “I recognized in Troup a great painter whose work undoubtedly integrated with great vigour the main movements of modern painting whilst at the same time preserving its distinctive originality. I am honoured to count Troup among my friends because I consider him to be one of the best contemporary artists.“
Still, this favourable response to Troup´s work was preceded by training at the State School of Graphics in Prague and at the State Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design where he studied the art and graphics of books. A scholarship in Paris, where he gained painting skills and experience, tremendously influenced Troup´s work. In the second half of the 1940’s, he studied at the “École des Arts décoratifs” and François Desnoyer´s studio; later he continued at the “École des Beaux Arts” under the guidance of Maurice Brianchon.
Soon, however, the dark cloud of the Iron Curtain settled across Europe and its shadow dramatically affected the art and life of Miloslav Troup. After some serious thought, he decided to return to his homeland rather than pursue his promising career in France. He never returned to Paris, which was so precious to him. For the remainder of his life he thought back to this City of Light and the French spirit thus remains omnipresent in his paintings and illustrations. After the return from France in 1950, he settled in Prague where he lived until his death. In his work, he continued expressing the trends established in Paris. Troup was mostly inspired by figurative painting and landscape painting. He found his favourites subjects not only in Prague and its historical architecture, but also in other places where he used to sojourn – in South Bohemia and the Mediterranean.
Illustrations, as his main livelihood, started to play a key role in the painter´s following work. Troup managed to capture a large and diverse number of subjects and actions thanks to his original artistic skilfulness which was also rewarded by prominent international prizes; in the area of illustration he remained a temperamental painter. The list of books with his illustration comprises over 130 titles.
A vast and utterly exceptional work by Miloslav Troup is ranked among the best of Czech art culture in the 20th century. Thanks to its time in France, his work is also classified as a part of an international artistic movement. Considering the Czech environment, Troup´s work cannot be easily identified as belonging to some art movement or groups due to the fact that the artist was an individual who did not want to be associated with any mainstream art form at that time. Therefore, his appraisal is not subject to periodic preferences; by its originality he stands aside from the predominant art styles. This might be the reason why Troup has been appreciated on a wider level only relatively recently. It is worth remembering that Troup introduced his work during his lifetime at international prestigious exhibitions where he was also awarded. In 1963, for example, he received a gold medal on the occasion of the International Book Illustration Biennial in Sao Paulo and in 1966 he received a UNESCO prize for the best book illustration at the Frankfurt Book Fair.
The society of admirers and supporters of Miloslav Troup looks after his artistic legacy under the name “Společnost TROUP 2017”. The society has organised a number of exhibitions - the most significant took place in Prag´s Municipal House Gallery in 2017 to comemorate the 100th anniversary of Miloslav Troup´s birth.