Analysis of the texts written about Jeff Wall. Exploring the relationship between texts about Wall and his own essays about his work. Looking for some links or some conflicts between texts. Studying structure of the main topics discussed in essays about Wall and his own written replies to these topics. Wall's position on the art scene based on literature.

Close look on the meaning of the work of polish photographer Rafal Milach and his life.

In my thesis I focused on the topic of the night in the Czech fine arts from the 19th to the 21st century. The aim of my work is not conduct a survey of the issues as a whole, it does not make efforts to be a historical outline, but the goal is to present a different conception of the night in the works of some selected artists. This text is concentrating on the works of artists who design the night in the landscape and urban sceneries. In every night scene we can see the light, either natural or artificial, which is the bearer of artist´s imaginings. The work goes from the introduction of the light and darkness symbolism throughout the era of the human history and physical essence of the light to the presentations of individual artists who reflect the night with natural kinds of light or the artificial ones.

Thesis bearing the name ?Boarders of Contemporary Documentary Photography? is focused on specific development, which underwent foreign documentary photography for about last two decades. The work is divided into three separate chapters, each of them deals with a different topic. The first chapter deals with the process of integration of documentary photography in an artistic context. The following chapter provides detailed reports on a new trend in documentary photography, which is called conceptual documentary photography. The third part is devoted to the remarkable personality of contemporary documentary photography - Allan Sekula. His photographic and closely related theoretical work is so specific that it is allocated a separate area.

Jak se mohou navzájem ovlivnit dvě naprosto odlišná média, jako jsou fotografie a psaní? Tato práce si klade za cíl odpovědět na tuto otázku. Hlavní myšlenkou této práce je určit vztah mezi poezií a fotografií. Pár vybraných fotografií poslouží jako příklady a budou podrobeny rozboru. Práce je rozdělena do pěti kapitol, přičemž první část tvoří Úvod, druhá kapitola podává základní shrnutí obou médií. Třetí kapitola se zabývá rozborem prací japonského fotografa Masaa Yamamota. Čtvrtá kapitola rozebírá několik vybraných příkladů fotografií, které jsou nahlíženy metaforicky. Poslední, pátá kapitola přináší výsledek zkoumání této práce a shrnutí, jak se navzájem ovlivňují poezie a fotografie v dějinách a v tvorbě.

The paper deals with the development of the Czech journalistic sport photography from mid 20th century until recent time. Conditions that influenced the work of sports photographers are mapped, whether it was technical equipment, political constraints or other relevant facts. The paper mentions key events that have had importance in the Czech sports photography. The very beginnings of the Czech sports photography are described, too, to add context with the period followed. Furthermore, some noteworthy cases are mentioned, such as career change of a professional sportsman to a sport photographer. Ethically doubtful practices, once quite frequent, are followed, too. Another infrequently studied area of interest is discussed, which is the phenomenon of successful pictures of neglected events. The paper also provides the reader with a list of the foremost Czech sports photographers, a quantitative analysis of sport photos in the Rude Pravo daily (name later changed to Pravo). Main moments of change are studied from the point of view of the extent of the sport photography on the pages of Czech dailies. Since this topic has not been extensively covered by books, an important part of the paper is based on original interviews with veteran Czech sport photographers, including Stanislav Tereba, the only Czech winner...

Xue Huake is a contemporary Chinese humanistic documentary photographer. Until now he has made many successful photographic projects. He is the founder of the Photography Department at the China Academy of Art and head of the department from its very beginning. He is also a member of the Chinese Educational Photographic Society, Chairman of the Zhejiang Folk Photographic Society and a life member of the Royal Photographic Society with the highest award (Fellowship of the Royal Photographic Society). In recent years, his works have been often exhibited in the well-known galleries and other art institutions in China and abroad. Over the years in the field of photography Professor Xue has received many awards, including: the first Chinese who received the first prize in the International Exhibition of Photography by Epson. The main published books: Photography from Travels, The Mysteries of Light and Shadow, Tibetan Burial, Tibetans, Walk through Old Streets of Hangzhou etc.

The Master thesis deals with life and work of a Silesian photographer and painter Józef Raszka (1875-1929). During the compilation of the thesis emphasis was put on searching and collecting information in archives and finally on their processing into one comprehensive unit. Generally, the thesis is divided into four main parts. The first chapter outlines historical events that took place during Raszka's life in a region he lived in. The other two chapters describe Raszka's life and the research method in detail. All of the chapters mentioned above should introduce this extraordinary and controversial personality to a reader and simultaneously get him/her acquainted with the artist's complicated character and interesting attitude toward life. In the last chapter the findings are applied in order to interpret Raszka's work. The indivisible part of the thesis consists also of a photography illustration and a catalogue that can be found at end of the thesis and which encompasses reproductions of all Raszka's photographs which are known.

American painter Ed Ruscha has been using medium of photography since his studies at Chouinard ART Institute in Los Angeles. In 1963 he published author's book Twentysix Gasoline Stations which depicts gasoline stations on the road between Los Angeles and Oklahoma. My diploma thesis describes Ruscha´s book and the time and circumstances under which it was being made. I am putting Ruscha´s book in the context of cold war and atmosphere of this period. I am writing about american individualism and expansion of automobility and its strategies. I focused deeply on Ruscha´s early artist period and his studies in Los Angeles. I am describing the historical context of Ruscha´s way from Oklahoma to Los Angeles. I emphasize its influence on american society. I inquire Ruscha's point of view to art, art history and his resistance to mainstream that was coming from New York to California. The book Twentysix Gasoline Stations was published three years after Ruscha's graduation, so it is considered as an early masterpiece. I am writing about fusion of art and roadside imagery and its historical context of 30's and 40's. I emphasize their difference and their similarity. The field of my study was extended by Paul Virilio´s essay Aesthetics of Disappearance where Virilio draws relationship between automobilism and cinematography. Through his essay I am coming back to Ed Ruscha and thanks to it I am finding new relationships in Ruscha's work. I enhance the atmosphere of this period by mentioning roadmovies and its link to american individualism and explosion of automobilism. I contrast this context with situation in Europe, its identity and geopolitical influences. At the end of my thesis I emphasize Ruscha's work and his contribution to questions about aesthetic and non-aesthetic and his reflexion of automobilism expansion and a book form as a new way to present art.

The life and work of Bob Krčil have so far been known from fragments and unsubstantiated legends. The aim of this essayistic piece is to lay out the deeper motives of his personal trajectory, photographic oeuvre, and activities for the Czech exile community. Krčil’s photographic body of work is inseparably connected with his eventful life. The writing of the thesis was preceded by tracking down and putting together Krčil’s fragmented estate, sorting out his correspondence and writings, and interviewing people who knew him personally. By drawing on these materials, the thesis aims to provide insight into the life and motivations of this important figure of Czech exile culture.