The world hasn’t changed much since Hanzelka and Zikmund, says exhibition curator

An exhibition, titled Then and Now, commemorates the travels of the iconic Czech traveller duo Hanzelka and Zikmund, known for their travels in the 1940s and 1950s. Czech Radio spoke to its curator Magdalena Preiningerová to find out more.

The exhibition of comparative photographs from the travels of Hanzelka and Zikmund and the Z101 Expedition shows what the world looked like Then and Now. Black-and-white images taken nearly eighty years ago offer a window into the past, while contemporary color photographs from the same locations restore their relevance and reveal how the world, and we with it, have changed.

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Příspěvek sdílený Klub H+Z - Jiří Hanzelka a Miroslav Zikmund (@klub.hz)

Magdalena Preiningerová, who has been working at the Hanzelka and Zikmund archive at the Museum of Southeast Moravia in Zlín since 1999, on what the archive entails:

“In our collections, we have the entire travel archive of Hanzelka and Zikmund, and part of that archive includes over 160,000 photographs, negatives, and slides. From time to time, there have been attempts to find the same places, and among those following in their footsteps are travelers Tomáš Vaňourek and Linda Piknerová, who are retracing the African leg of Hanzelka and Zikmund’s journey.”

Linda Piknerová just before the start of Expedition Z101 from Zlín on April 22, 2021|Photo: Roman Verner, Czech Radio

Vaňourek and Piknerová wanted to trace their African journey to show Egyptian, Sudanese, and Ethiopian photos. The curators also wanted to include architectural landscapes so that visitors would be able to gauge for themselves how the world has, or hasn’t, changed.

The Zlín exhibition is called Then and Now, Here and There and will run until the end of summer. But it also differs in that Here and There refers to a comparison between Baťa factories in Africa and in Zlín and elsewhere around the world, because the Zlín museum also specializes in the Baťa company and its global branches.

Source: Česká pošta

Preiningerová says the best photographic finds are those that come with a story:

Tomáš Vaňourek, member of the Z 101 expedition, which followed in the footsteps of the traveling duo Miroslav Zikmund and Jiří Hanzelka|Photo: Štěpán Macháček, Czech Radio

“Personally, it didn't surprise me; instead, it confirmed that I haven't changed much. Of course, some places look different, but when I compare the preparation for the journey, when I compare the complications that led to both the first journey of Hanzelka and Zigmund, and now the journey of Tomáš and Linda in Africa, it's as if I'm wondering how similar they are.”

The curator of the exhibition also believes that younger generations have a lot to learn from the collection, evident from their repeated visits:

“I believe it does, because they’re coming back to the museum not just as visitors but also as researchers. The Hanzelka and Zigmund Archive collections are open to the public, according to the wishes of the two travelers. This means that if they make arrangements, they can study the materials directly in our research room.”

“Young people are inspired by this work not just to travel, but also in their artistic, film, and even literary creations.”

The displayed photographs are accompanied by artifacts from the gear and equipment of Jiří Hanzelka, Miroslav Zikmund, and Tomáš Vaňourek, which were an integral part of their African journey.

The exhibition in Prague is open until the end of August on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.