Alan Pajer
From April 3 to April 7, 2018, there was a photography exhibit of Václav Havel by Alan Pajer in the Lentz Room, S218 Love Library, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Václav Havel
(*5. 10. 1936 Prague – †18. 12. 2011)
Václav Havel
- Writer and Dramatist
- One of the first Spokesmen for Charter 77
- Leading Figure of the Velvet Revolution of 1989
- Last President of Czechoslovakia
- First President of the Czech Republic
“The salvation of the human world lies nowhere else than in the human heart, in the human power to reflect, in human meekness, and in human responsibility,” said Václav Havel in his address to the U.S. Congress in February 1990. His words are still relevant today.
I often hear comments emphasizing all the things that Václav Havel had not done. I believe, however, that it is necessary and more important to emphasize all the things he had done. I think that Billy Gibbons, the singer of the rock band ZZ Top, summarized it best when he said: “The popular success of Václav Havel’s remarkable and most memorable accomplishments are exemplified with his focus towards freedom of the human spirit everywhere.” To this cause, Václav Havel sacrificed his own freedom and health.
Everybody who knew him personally, or who read his books, knows that he was very critical of himself. One day, while he was walking in Central Park in New York City, he noticed an empty pedestal for a statue. He jumped on top of it and said, “Take a picture of this as my message to the future. Please do not make statues of me; I do not deserve it, and it would look terrible.” However, the world wide popularity of Václav Havel and the respect to his works were greater than his humble plea. So, on November 19, 2014, his bust was unveiled at the United States Capitol Building in Washington DC.
Alan Pajer, photographer of Václav Havel over 20 years
Josef Sudek
The organizers of Prague Spring 50 would like to highlight a special exhibition at the University of Nebraska's Sheldon Museum of Art, which celebrated the work of Czech photographer Josef Sudek (1896–1976) with a gallery installation in the spring and summer of 2018. In 1968, Sheldon was the first institution in the US to exhibit Sudek’s photographs, subsequently acquiring twenty-six prints for its permanent collection.
Last Roses
Gelatin silver print, date unknown
11 1/2 × 9 1/4 inches (29.21 × 23.49 cm)
Sheldon Museum of Art, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Gift of the artist, U–1934.1970
Remote Place on the Window
Gelatin silver print, date unknown
9 × 11 1/8 inches (22.86 × 28.258 cm)
Sheldon Museum of Art, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Gift of the artist, U–1937.1970
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