The Le immagini della fantasia exhibition came to life in 1983, inspired by Štěpán Zavřel’s grand vision: to turn Sàrmede into a special place where beauty could be reimagined, and imagination and creativity could flourish.
This free-spirited vision emerges vividly in the tempera and watercolor illustrations created for The Return of Ario, from Cyrus the Great to Cyrus the Little, published by Quadragono Libri in 1974. These works are subtly but unmistakably connected to Persian culture.
Before our eyes unfold landscapes painted in rich shades of blue and turquoise, densely woven with instantly recognizable visual references: pointed arches, Arabesque domes, turbans, and vibrantly dressed figures. It is Zavřel’s exuberant and “fairy-tale” world—one that, like an Edenic garden, constantly invites us to revel in beauty and embrace imagination.
The works displayed in the museum are created using mixed media.