Joris Karl Huysmans jako kritik umění a jeho pražské odezvy

This text focuses on Joris-Karl Huysmans as an art critic and on his influence on the Czech environment. As during his lifetime, Huysmans’s critical work as well as his personal life underwent significant transformations, his work found favorable response among several different opinion groups, which engaged in controversies with one another. The circle associated with the Moderní revue (Modern Review) magazine presented Huysmans as a decadent and focused on his texts such as A rebours (1884). Of the Moderní revue circle, particularly Antonín Procházka’s and Karel Hlaváček’s texts featured inspiration by Huysmans. The Volné směry (Free Styles) magazine, on the other hand, perceived Huysmans as a naturalist and a defender of impressionism. Huysmans influenced particularly Miloš Jiránek and František Xaver Šalda; the latter wrote an extensive obituary of Huysmans. Huysmans was further mentioned in Rozhledy (Horizons), a periodical which voiced opinions which were less limited in breadth, and his conversion made him an attractive figure also for the Catholic Nový život (New Life) magazine, which however did not focus on his critical thought on art. Generally speaking, Huysmans’s reviews were widely read in the Czech Lands, although their selection was limited. Czech art periodicals found his reviews interesting for his daring style and a broad range of themes, which also included little-known artists, caricatures and posters.