An exhibition of Martin Velíšek´s illustrations to Knud Rasmussen´s Greenlandic Myths and Legends was opened on Monday 21 June 2010 at Knud Rasmussen´s House in Hundested, North-West Zealand, on the occasion of Greenland´s National Day and 100th anniversary of the founding of the Thule Trading Station. The exhibition lasted until 24 October 2010.

After the welcome speech by the Mayor of Halsnæs Kommune Helge Friis, the City Counsellor Helle Lunderød gave a short speech on Knud Rasmussen’s role in Danish art. Czech Ambassador Zdeněk Lyčka opened the exhibition in Greenland´s national costume and spoke about the origin of the exhibition and the translation of Greenlandic Myths and Legends by Knud Rasmussen to Czech. After the opening, the guests had the opportunity to taste Czech beer and wine and participate in the program of the Greenland National Day celebrations – exhibitions by two artists with Greenlandic routes, tasting of Greenlandic specialties on grill and a concert of Greenlandic music. An article about the event was published in Greenlandic daily Sermitsiaq.

Mayor´s  welcome speech. From  left: Czech Ambassador Zdeněk Lyčka, Director of the Frederiks Værk Industrial Museum, Frank Allan Rasmussen, and Mayor Helge Friis

Mayor Helge Friis and Czech Ambassador Zdeněk Lyčka with Knud Rasmussen’s bust

Martin Velíšek (* 1963) graduated in glass art at the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague. His glass art represented the Czech Republic at the EXPO World Exhibition in Japan in 2005. He is the main “visual artist” of the alternative punk band Už jsme doma and a regular illustrator of the Czech weekly Týden. Besides Greenlandic Myths and Legends, he illustrated many other books including Božena Němcová´s classic The Grandmother.

The exhibition of raw and grotesque illustrations was placed in the House of Knud Rasmussen, a Danish-Greenlandic polar explorer, who collected and translated the most of Greenlandic myths and legends into Danish. From his extensive work, a selection of “Greenlandic Myths and Legends“ was published in Czech (Argo Publishing House 1998, second edition 2007, translation: Viola and Zdeněk Lyčka). Milan Gelnar, Director of ArgoPublishing House, was present at the opening.

From left: Mayor Helge Friis, Ambassador Zdeněk Lyčka, City Counsellor Helle Lunderød
and Exhibition Coordinator Søren la Cour Jensen from Frederiks Værk Industrial Museum

Many guests attended the event, including the Slovak Ambassador Lubomír Golian (left)

The exhibition was presented for the first time in September 2008 in Greenland’s capital Nuuk as part of The Czech Days in Greenland. Then it travelled around Greenland – Qaqortoq, Maniitsoq, Sisimiut and Ilulissat. The inhabitants of Maniitsoq had the opportunity to meet Martin Velíšek and attend a common lecture by Martin Velíšek and Czech Ambassador Zdeněk Lyčka in April 2009.

21 June – 24 October 2010
Knud Rasmussen´s House
Knud Rasmussens Vej 9, 3390 Hundested

Knud Rasmussen’s House in Hundested