The Filla Foundation stands at the forefront of an exceptional project aimed at systematically documenting the artistic legacy of the Czech painter Emil Filla.
Although Emil Filla undoubtedly ranks among the key figures of the avant-garde movement of the first half of the 20th century, there has so far been no comprehensive record of his work that meets the current international standards of online catalogues raisonnés and scholarly publications dedicated to the compilation of artists’ works.
The project’s objective is to create a professionally grounded and visually representative catalogue of Filla’s artistic legacy, including previously unpublished or little-known works held in both private and institutional collections in the Czech Republic and abroad. An integral part of the project is the thorough documentation of provenance, exhibition history, and relevant literature related to each artwork.
This online catalogue is dynamic — regularly updated and continuously expanded — providing users with extensive information about individual works. The ambition is not only to compile the catalogue raisonné of one of the most prominent figures of Czech modern art, but also to offer a deeper insight into Filla’s artistic evolution and his importance in shaping the cultural identity of modern art in the Czech context. With this initiative, the Filla Foundation continues the tradition of professional care for artistic heritage and opens the path to a renewed understanding of one of the pillars of Czech visual culture.
The creators of the project envision the catalogue as a valuable tool for a wide range of users — students and scholars, who will be able to access Filla’s paintings and drawings through advanced search functions and store specific information for further research; auction houses and galleries, which require detailed provenance data and the latest findings about individual works; collectors, who seek to better understand the history of their paintings and their relation to the rest of Filla’s oeuvre; and the general public, interested in discovering what Filla’s works look like and learning more about this significant artist beyond the scope of existing printed publications.
The online catalogue has been — and continues to be — a collaborative effort.
The Filla Foundation welcomes input from experts, researchers, students, and collectors in order to ensure the careful preservation of the artist’s legacy.
