František Tichý (1895 - 1961) became a legend during his lifetime, with his fame continuing to grow after his untimely death. Its main axis can be traced through the course of this exhibition: it begins with the short period before his departure for France, when his first solo exhibition took place in the window of a bookshop (1928), and proceeds to focus on the transformation of his work during the 1930s, starting with the years he spent in Paris (1930-1935), followed by its culmination during the war-torn 1940s. The presentation concludes with an epilogue post-1949, when Tichý's work declined significantly, partly due to the strong attacks waged by the Stalinists that resulted in the artist's prolonged internal crisis. He became a prime example of an independent artist who stood firmly by his personal principles, for which he was duly banned from exhibiting in the 1950s; nonetheless, he had the opportunity to briefly influence the younger generation as a professor at the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague, from which he was dismissed in 1951. The thematic diversity and technical virtuosity of Tichý's work are linked by a common inner harmony manifested in a sense of longing, expressed by lingering on the edge of life and death, an awareness of connectedness and extreme experiences of vertigo and intense psychological excitement. He managed to imbue his sensitive works with these states in such a way that they still strike a chord today. Contemporary viewers admire the artist's playfulness and inventiveness, through which melancholy shines as the common denominator.