Božidar Jakac

(Novo mesto, 16.7.1899-Ljubljana, 20.11.1989)

Božidar Jakac was a Slovenian painter and pedagogue, but above all we know him as one of the fundamental creators of graphics in our country. His works were exhibited for the first time in 1918 in the Jakopič Pavilion. With them, he convinced the great impressionist so much that he advised him to enroll in the art academy in Prague. Jakac joined it a year later and devoted himself mainly to graphics. He completed his painting studies in 1923. The young and promising artist was given the opportunity to present his works to the public at a solo exhibition in the Rudolfinum.

During his stay in the Czech Republic, the artist's expression fully matured. He was mainly influenced by expressionism, which he achieved by intensifying contrasts without deforming the figures. These images of Jakč belong to the very top of Slovenian graphics. A distinct individuality is already noticeable in them, through which he presented a lighter social note. Although he is poetic in expression, he achieved expression by juxtaposing intense blackness on graphic sheets with empty whiteness. Over time, his artistic language moved more and more towards realism. He was an avid traveler. By 1943, he had visited many countries from Istanbul to the Nord Cape. During his travels in Europe and America, he produced a large number of documentary sketches, and he also often filmed and photographed. In 1931, together with Miran Jarec, he published two volumes entitled Odmevi rede zemlje, in which he collected his works. He painted an idealized reality that he was constantly looking for in the world around him. He was a skilled portraitist and a good landscape painter, and he also established himself as a scenographer, illustrator and caricaturist. In the period between the two wars, he painted with oil paints and pastels, and more than 1,000 were produced by the graphic artist. It was the most affordable material through which the wider masses were informed. He primarily depicted partisan themes and struggles, which he tried to perpetuate into a kind of legend with the help of the graphic medium. He is often referred to as the father of Slovenian graphics, as he created innovations with his production and strongly influenced many generations of artists. He tried his hand at woodcut, lithography, drypoint and etching. He also colored a few of them. In the post-war period, he continued painting again. His expression was softer and more lyrical than that of Jakopičev, on whom he relied when painting. In addition to his own creations, he worked hard to establish a painting academy in Ljubljana.

In 1945, when it opened its doors for the first time, he became its rector. He was aware that Slovenian artists had to connect with the international space as best as possible. At the request of Jakko and other art educators, the Ljubljana School of Graphics was formed, within which the International Biennale of Graphics has been held since 1952. Throughout his artistic career, he sent his works to numerous exhibitions at home and abroad. One of the most important was on the 50th anniversary of his creation, when he organised a large retrospective in Ljubljana. In addition to numerous international awards, he also received three Prešeren Prizes for his outstanding work in 1947, 1948 and 1949.

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Božidar Jakac je bil slovenski slikar in pedagog, predvsem pa ga poznamo kot enega temeljnih ustvarjalcev grafike pri nas. Njegova dela so bila prvič razstavljena leta 1918 v Jakopičevem paviljonu. Z njimi je velikega impresionista tako prepričal, da mu je svetoval naj se vpiše na likovno akademijo v Pragi. Vanjo je Jakac prišel leto kasneje in se je posvetil predvsem grafiki. Študij slikarstva je zaključil leta 1923. Mlademu in perspektivnemu umetniku so omogočili, da se je javnosti s svojimi deli predstavil na samostojni razstavi v Rudolfinumu.

Med bivanjem na češkem je umetnikov izraz že popolnoma dozorel. Nanj je vplival predvsem ekspresionizem, ki ga je dosegel s stopnjevanjem kontrastov, ne da bi pri tem figure deformiral. Te Jakčeve podobe sodijo v sam vrh slovenske grafike. V njih je že opazna izrazita individualnost, preko katere je predstavil lahkotnejšo socialno noto. Čeprav je v izrazu poetičen, je ekspresijo dosegel s tem, ko je na grafičnih listih postavil močno črnino ob bok izpraznjeni belini. Sčasoma je njegov likovni jezik prehajal vse bolj proti realizmu. Bil je navdušen popotnik. Do leta 1943 je obiskal številne dežele od Istanbula do Nord Capa. Med potovanji po Evropi in Ameriki je izdelal ogromno dokumentarnih skic, pogosto pa je tudi snemal in fotografiral. Leta 1931 je skupaj z Miranom Jarcem objavil dva zvezka z naslovom Odmevi rdeče zemlje, v katerih je zbral svoja dela. Slikal je idealizirano resničnost, ki jo je ves čas iskal v svetu okoli sebe. Bil je spreten portretist in dober krajinar, uveljavil pa se je tudi kot scenograf, ilustrator in karikaturist. V času med obema vojnama je slikal z oljnimi barvami in s pasteli, več kot 1000 pa je izdelal grafik. To je bil cenovno najugodnejši material preko katerega so obveščali širše množice. Prikazoval je predvsem partizansko tematiko in boje, ki jih je s pomočjo grafičnega medija skušal ovekovečiti v nekakšno legendo. O njem večkrat govorijo kot o očetu slovenske grafike, saj je s svojo produkcijo izoblikoval novosti in močno vplival še na številne generacije umetnikov. Preizkusil se je v lesorezu, litografiji, suhi igli in jedkanici. Redke izmed teh je tudi koloriral. V povojnem času je zopet nadaljeval s slikarstvom. Njegov izraz je bil mehkejši in bolj liričen kot Jakopičev, na katerega se je oprl pri slikanju. Poleg lastnega ustvarjanja si je močno prizadeval za ustanovitev slikarske akademije v Ljubljani.

Leta 1945, ko je ta prvič odprla vrata, je postal njen rektor. Zavedal se je, da se morajo slovenski umetniki čim bolje povezati z mednarodnim prostorom. Na željo Jakca in drugih likovnih pedagogov se je oblikovala ljubljanska grafična šola, v okviru katere je od leta 1952 potekal Mednarodni grafični bienale. Skozi celotno umetniško kariero je svoja dela pošiljal na številne razstave doma in v tujino. Ena pomembnejših je bila ob 50. letnici njegovega ustvarjanja, ko je v Ljubljani priredil veliko retrospektivo. Za svoje izjemno delo je poleg številnih mednarodnih nagrad prejel tudi tri Prešanove, leta 1947, 1948 in 1949.

Besedilo je za galerijo Porta Alpina pripravila Pia Župevec, dipl. um. zgod.
The text was prepared for the Porta Alpina gallery by Pia Župevec, B.Sc. art history

SOURCES/VIRI:
Elena ALČEVA, s. v. Ljubljanska grafična šola, Pojmovnik slovenske umetnosti po letu 1945, Ljubljana 2009, pp. 166-171.
Nika AUTOR, s. v. Fotografija in umetnost, Pojmovnik slovenske umetnosti po letu 1945, Ljubljana 2009, pp. 58-63.
Karel DOBIDA, s. v. Jakac, Božidar, Enciklopedija Likovnih Umjetnosti, 3, Zagreb 1964, p. 53.
Špelca ČOPIČ, Slovensko slikarstvo, Ljubljana 1966.
Luc MENAŠE, s. v. Božidar Jakac, Evropski umetnostno zgodovinski leksikon, Ljubljana 1971,
coll. 920-922.
France STELE, Slovenski slikarji, Ljubljana 1949, p. 140.
Breda ŠKRJANEC, Božidar Jakac, Ljubljanska grafična šola (Ljubljana, Mednarodni grafični likovni cenrom, ed. Barbara Habič Pregl), Lubljana 1997, pp. 114-124.