WATTS INDEXThe canonical database of visual culture

Artists›Frantisek Drtikol

Frantisek Drtikol

Artist

WA-00034426

PrintmakingPhotographyRealismGeometric Abstraction

Representation

None documented

Institutional Exhibitions

Works in Collection

Assets Indexed

Authority-backed Facts

Publications Referenced

80%

Profile Completeness

Cultural Positioning

Influence Graph

No influence edges encoded yet.

Authority Records (2)

WikidataQ950570

MoMA

Source Registry (1)

MoMA bulk 2026-05-04https://www.moma.org/artists/40667
Tier 1 · Institutional92%

About

Why this artist matters now

František Drtikol was a Czech photographer and printmaker whose modernist studio portraits and nudes, created primarily between 1910 and 1935, were distinguished by geometric abstraction, dramatic chiaroscuro, and carefully constructed compositions. Working in Prague, he combined straight photography with hand-applied pigment and graphic techniques to create highly stylized images that moved beyond documentary realism toward a formalist aesthetic. His later work incorporated photomontage and experimental processes. Drtikol's practice bridged Czech avant-garde movements and European modernism, establishing him as a pioneering figure in interwar art photography.

Source: Moma Bulk 2026 05 04 · Trust score: 92% · Updated 1mo ago

Graph relationships

Taste overlap and adjacency

Movement

Photography

Medium

Printmaking

Related Artists

12 in graph

Institutional

Museum Collections

Art Institute of Chicago Museum of Modern ArtNew York

Canonical record

Artworks (7)

Untitled

1929 · Gum bichromate print

Image/paper/mount: 29.1 × 23.3 cm (11 1/2 × 9 3/16 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

WattsOS

The Composition

1927 · Carbon print

23.0 x 28.5 cm (9 1/16 x 11 1/4 in.)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

WattsOS

Untitled (Nude)

1927 · gelatin silver print

Image: 8 x 11.6 cm (3 1/8 x 4 9/16 in.); Matted: 30.6 x 35.6 cm (12 1/16 x 14 in.)

Cleveland Museum of Art

Untitled

1922 · Gum bichromate print

Image/paper: 27.8 × 22.4 cm (11 × 8 7/8 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

WattsOS

[Nude with Hat and Bowl of Artificial Fruits, Posed amongst Undulating Stage Props]

1920 · Gelatin silver print

27.5 x 22.5 cm (10 13/16 x 8 7/8 in.)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

WattsOS

[Upper Torso of Young Male Nude, Holding Long White Rod and Posed behind Large, Dark, Circular Forms]

1920 · Carbon print

29.4 x 22.8 cm (11 9/16 x 9 in.)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Untitled (self-portrait in drag)

1920 · Gelatin silver print

7 × 4 5/8" (17.8 × 11.7 cm)

Museum of Modern Art

Artwork sources (4)

7 published of 8 catalogued · 4 with image

The Met
3 published
Art Institute Chicago
2 published2 img
MoMA
1 publishedof 2 catalogued2 img
Cleveland Museum of Art
1 published

Per-Artwork Provenance Chains (top 1)

1 entries · 1 sources

Untitled (Nude)
1927 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number

Record

Images

Artsy

Art Institute of Chicago

Relationships

Movements3

Photography Realism Geometric Abstraction

Collections3

Art Institute of Chicago Museum of Modern Art Rago

Institutional

Representation & Collections

In collection

Art Institute of Chicago

In collection

Museum of Modern Art

New York, US

Market

Auction sale history

Houses that have sold works by this artist at auction

Auction house

Rago

1 lot · 2025

Market

Auction History

Work	Auction House	Date	Estimate	Hammer Price
Untitled	Rago	Dec 2025	$30,000 – $50,000	Unsold

Record

Exhibitions and timeline

No exhibitions or timeline entries yet