One of Štěpán Zavřel’s greatest successes, A Dream in Venice tells children about the city of Venice, its past and future, between dream and reality. The book, originally published in Zurich by Bohem Press in 1974 under the title Venedig Morgen, has been read and loved by generations of children in various editions. It now returns, thanks to Bohem Press Italia, in its original form with a carefully restored text by the writer Mafra Gagliardi. A Dream in Venice is an underwater adventure to discover the city, its monuments, and everyday life, guided by a little mermaid or clinging to the tentacles of octopuses, among floating seaweed, sinuous like the unforgettable brushstrokes that make up the illustrations.
“After various experiments in all possible directions, I chose diluted acrylic, treated like watercolor,” stated Štěpán Zavřel. “Even though for a submerged city one might think of pure watercolor.” An extraordinarily rich book full of possibilities to ignite a passion for art and history, where, almost hypnotized by color scales and decorative rhythms, one might exclaim, “So many wonders, so many beautiful things!”
The story is a heartfelt plea to react in the face of beauty that is about to be lost; but it all begins with a drawing—the mermaid that Marco draws in class after the lesson—and with a dream. In this, as in other of his finest books, Zavřel speaks to all children who believe in their dreams and who can change the future.
The works displayed in the museum are executed in acrylic.