Almost all of us know his unmistakable illustrations from childhood. Many of us associate his images with winter, snow, children's games, well-being and a peaceful time full of nostalgia and contemplation, although in recent years we can only nostalgically remember the times when Christmas was covered with a blanket of snow year after year. With the iconic paintings of Josef Lada, the phrase "Lada‘s winter" has also generally been used. The painter's love for this season is reflected in the snowy landscapes and village squares where children are sledding, building a snowman and enjoying winter fun. It can be said that winter was a fateful season for Lada, in which he was born in December 1887, and during which he also died in December 1957 as a person recognized and valued by the nation.

The painting Winter landscape from 1944 depicts a typical Lada‘s winter landscape with falling snowflakes and children playing around a snowman on the village square. The shields of the village cottages stand out from the white darkness. The silhouette of a snow-covered church in the middle of the village cemetery looms above the village on the hill. Silence, peace and tranquility breathe directly from this picture by Lada.

And so allow us to wish you a peaceful Christmas Eve and a beautiful, happy and fabulous Christmas holidays...

Josef Lada, Winter landscape, 1944, from the collections of the Vysočina regional gallery in Jihlava

The work was selected from the gallery's collections and the text was written by Jana Bojanovská, December 2022.