Jan Preisler

Jan Preisler (17 February 1872, in Králův Dvůr[1] – 27 April 1918, in Prague) was a Czech painter and art professor.

His drawings attracted the attention of his headmaster and his parents soon received letters inviting them to send him for studies in Prague, with financial support.

In 1896, he provided the cover for the first issue of the association's magazine Volné Směry (roughly, Free Directions) and served as its editor for several years.

He travelled to Italy in 1902, helped design the posters for the Edvard Munch exhibition of 1905 in Prague and visited Paris in 1906, where he was influenced by the work of Paul Gauguin.

After the turn of the century, he attempted to express the ineffable and mysterious depths of the soul, filled with melancholy and desire, finding his inspiration in poetry.