Discussion with the delegation of Czech Senate, opening of the exhibition of posters of Jaromír99

The Senate delegation consists of:

• Senator Mr. Tomáš Goláň, Chair of the Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs;
• Senator Mr. Jan Holásek, Vice Chair of the Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs;
• Senator Ms. Ivana Váňová, member of the Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs.

The meeting began with a discussion with members of the Senate delegation on the topic of future postal elections for Czech compatriots living abroad. It was followed by the opening of an exhibition of posters by Jaromír99, inspired by the novel "The Castle" by Franz Kafka. Members of the Senate delegation of the Parliament of the Czech Republic, member of the Canadian Parliament and chairman of the Czech-Canadian Friendship Parliamentary Committee John Brassard and Deputy Ambassador of the Czech Republic to Canada Aleš Opatrný jointly opened the exhibition.

The Exhibition

This year we commemorate one hundred years since the death of Franz Kafka, one of the most influential writers of the 20th century born in Prague. On this occasion, Czech Embassy in Ottawa presents the exhibition showcasing the expressive black & white prints of renowned Czech illustrator and musician, Jaromír 99 created for the David Zane Mairowitz’s comics adaptation of the Franz Kafka’s The Castle. The posters were first exhibited in 2020 as part of the Franz Kafka Festival in Frýdlantsko. Each image serves as a visual portal into Kafka's text, inviting viewers to interpret and engage with its suggestive and elusive nature. From the solitary figure of K. with his pilgrim’s stick to the ethereal presence of the chateau looming in the clouds, the exhibition captures the essence of Kafka's surreal universe.

About Jaromír 99

Jaromír 99, whose real name is Jaromír Švejdík, was born in 1963 in Czechoslovakia and moves between the worlds of comics and music. He is a composer, singer, guitarist, the frontman of the Kafka Band. He won the European Film Award for his animated film "Alois Nebel".

About Franz Kafka

Franz Kafka was born in 1883 in Prague, and his name is a symbol of Prague's German-language literature, which artistically reflects the unique cultural and social atmosphere of centuries of coexistence among Czechs, Germans, and Jews in the Central European region. Kafka's work resonates globally with its timelessness. His books mirror not only the uncertainty and variability of his time but, above all, his inner conflict in existence, which gave his work a very specific character.

Kafka's perception of societal changes at the turn of the twentieth century and his sensitivity as a person and writer make his creations timeless. We constantly return to his texts, which warn us against falling into lethargy and urge us not to passively accept the absurdities of the era. However, there is much more to be found in his work, and it often depends on the reader how they interpret and understand the text.

Franz Kafka wrote a number of short stories and three novels—America, The Trial, and The Castle, which remains unfinished.