Frantisek Kupka (Born in 1871) was born in Opočno in Austria-Hungary, in eastern Bohemia. He died in 1957 in Puteaux, France. He studied at the Prague Art Academy from 1889 to 1892. During this time he painted patriotic and historical themes. In 1892, he enrolled at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna, where he specialized in allegorical and symbolic subjects. In 1894, Kupka exhibited at the Kunstverein, Vienna. This exhibition was very successful and it was followed by many others which were equally successful. By the spring of 1896 the artist had settled in Paris. Here Kupka attended the Julian Academy briefly and then studied at the School of Fine Arts with Jean-Pierre Laurens, a renowned artist of his time. During his early years in Paris, he worked as an illustrator of posters and books, and he became known for his humorous drawings for magazines and newspapers.
In 1906, Kupka settled in a suburb of Paris known as Puteaux, and in that same year exhibited for the first time at the Autumn Fair. Kupka began training as an artist in 1887 under Frantisek Sequens at the Prague academy. Sequens himself had been influenced so strongly by the Nazarener School. Four years later, he transferred to the academy in Vienna, where he worked until 1893 under Professor Eisenmenger. The vision, passion, and artistic talent of Kupka is shared in many galleries through an extensive selection of his works, and he enjoyed every opportunity to invite visitors to more fully share the beauty and sources of his artistic inspiration.
