Vladimír Boudník

Vladimír Boudník (17 March 1924 – 5 December 1968) was a Czech graphic artist and photographer. He was a key figure in Czech post-war art and a representative of the "explosionism" movement. He is best known for his active and structural graphic art, but also created mostly photographic and monotype works that, until recently, remained unknown. Boudník was born on 17 March 1924 in Prague. During World War II, he was sent to forced labor in Germany, an experience that resulted in a lifelong trauma. After the war, he attended art school, where he studied printmaking. He spent a brief period working in advertising before getting a job at an ironworks in Kladno, where he met Bohumil Hrabal. In 1952 Boudník, began working for ČKD Works in Prague. The factory environment served as an inspiration for his "active graphics" made of industrial material and waste. Boudník died on 5 December 1968 in Prague. He committed suicide while experimenting with asphyxiation.