gouache on paper laid down on cardboard
second half of the 1940s
lower left
22 × 33 cm
framed, mounted, glazed
This representative drawing from Lada’s sought-after peak period of the 1940s belongs to a series of winter themes, to which he repeatedly returned. At that time, Lada, as a respected figural artist, focused on either subject-matters with children, or villages without staffage. Winter Village Square with Hens stands out from others because, instead of crowded figures of villagers building a snowman, the scenery of a rural village square is revived only by a dog chasing hens. The artist has profiled himself as a masterful draughtsman of animals since his early years, and thus topics of this sort naturally appeared in his works since his first cartoons and comics for the magazine Humoristické listy. This artwork returns the beholder to the world of carefree youth with its nostalgic atmosphere. It carries the artist’s characteristic style, which can be identified in strong black outlines, the round morphology of individual elements, and the simplified colour range; it is also a synthesis of all the characteristic details of his works. Assessed during consultations by PhDr. J. Machalický and PhDr. K. Srp. The expertise by PhDr. P. Pečinková, CSc., is attached.