On Paper: Nativity Imagery from the Marian Library

Christmas in Color: The Pop-Up Nativities of Vojtěch Kubašta

Christmas in Color: The Pop-Up Nativities of Vojtěch Kubašta


In the early 1950s, Soviet-occupied Czechoslovakia was an unlikely setting for the flourishing of religious publishing. The printing industry had been nationalized by Communists in 1948, and while public displays of religious iconography were prohibited, Nativities were still popular among citizens and exported to the West. One artist, Vojtěch Kubašta (1914-1992), emerged at the forefront of this movement and created lively, reverent paper crèches during some of the darkest years of the Iron Curtain. 

The Artist Who Studied Architecture

Vojtěch Robert Vladimír Kubašta was born in Vienna in 1914 and immigrated to Prague with his family in 1918. Kubašta demonstrated a talent and passion for art at an early age, but his father, a bank manager, had other plans for his future. While his father wanted him to study law, the two eventually compromised, and Kubašta enrolled in the architecture program at the Czech Polytechnic University in Prague. 

Kubašta graduated with degrees in architecture and civil engineering in 1938, but conditions were difficult in German-occupied Czechoslovakia. Rather than working as an architect, he secured positions designing everything from ex libris (bookplates) to puppet stages. A chance meeting with the prominent art historian Otakar Štorch-Marien (1897-1974) significantly propelled Kubašta’s career. In order to evade pressure to publish Nazi propaganda, Czech publishing houses printed classics and titles that appealed to national pride. In this context, Kubašta and Štorch-Marien published a successful series of lithographed portfolios depicting Prague’s prominent architectural monuments. This richly illustrated series showcased the beginnings of Kubašta’s hallmark style.

Book Arts Under the Iron Curtain

In 1948 the Communist-run Ministry of Information closed 370 publishing houses and had control over all aspects of the Czech publishing industry. With increased manufacturing during the Soviet occupation, Kubašta transitioned into the commercial arena, designing advertising materials for sewing machines, light bulbs and Pilsner beer. Many of these advertisements featured Kubašta’s first forays into mechanical paper. In 1953, Kubašta took a position at the state-run publishing house Artia. Over the next couple of years, he transitioned into creating three-dimensional books and ephemera full time. During this period, Kubašta created the majority of the 15 to 17 paper creches scholars attribute to him. Despite the barriers of the Iron Curtain, Kubašta’s works were widely exported outside of his home country, and he continued to find success in his industry, including a collaboration with Walt Disney Co. in the 1970s.  

A Legacy, in Color

Kubašta was one of the most prolific paper engineers and illustrators of his time. His creations covered all areas of the book and movable paper arts and are now widely sought after by collectors. Although no complete inventory of his works exists, scholars estimate that he created well over 100 works, which have been translated into 37 languages with sales surpassing 35 million. 

This exhibit showcases four of Kubašta’s crèches held in the Marian Library’s collection.

Bethlehem of Třebechovice 
Vojtěch Kubašta
1967
Czech Republic
Marian Library Art & Artifacts Collection
ML.20.014 

For Bethlehem of Třebechovice, Kubašta (1914-1992) was inspired by a visit to Expo 67, the 1967 world's fair and exhibition in Montreal, where he saw an exquisite wooden Nativity with 2,000 figures and over 300 movable parts, carved with a knife and chisel by Josef Probošt and two assistants. Kubašta’s illustrations emulate the original wood Nativity and show scenes from everyday life in 19th-century Bohemia.


Pokoj lidem dobré vůle (Peace and Good Will to People)
Also known by the title Lidové Jeslicky (Folk Nativity)
Vojtěch Kubašta
1968
Czech Republic
Marian Library Art & Artifacts Collection
ML.20.013 

Trained as an architect, Kubašta often integrated traditional central European architecture into his pop-up crèches. This lively and colorful crèche captures the atmosphere of a rural central European town and features children delivering gifts including fish, music, toys and baked goods to the newborn Christ.

Gloria in Excelsis Deo
Vojtěch Kubašta
ca. 1956
Czech Republic
Marian Library Art & Artifacts Collection
ML.20.019 

One of Kubašta’s most traditional scenes, this crèche features the Holy Family in a stable with the ox and ass and baby Jesus in a straw-filled manger. The Magi and shepherds approach from either side, and in the foreground, villagers proceed toward the manger, bearing gifts.


[Star of Bethlehem]
Vojtěch Kubašta
Circa 1969
Czech Republic 
Marian Library Art & Artifacts Collection
ML.20.020

This scene features Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus in a stable in the foreground while shepherds and the Magi approach from the sides. Middle Eastern architecture and palm trees frame the setting.

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