Oskar Brázda

The couple lived for many years in Italy, were interned in Alghero, Sardinia, during the First World War, and later settled at Líčkov Castle in Czechoslovakia. They had two sons. Their elder son, Bohuslav "Slávo" Brázda (13 September 1916 – 1991), was born in Rome and later served as a Czechoslovak fighter pilot in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, attaining the rank of Flight Sergeant. Their younger son, Jan Brázda (1917–2012), became an artist, illustrator and internationally active stage and costume designer.

• Name — Oskar Brázda • Born — 30 September 1887 • Birthplace — Rosice, Austria-Hungary • Died — 19 December 1977 • Place of death — Líčkov, Czechoslovakia • Field — Painting, portraiture • Training — Academy of Fine Arts Vienna • Movement — Secessione Romana • Spouse — Amelie Posse (m. 1915; div. 1938) Marie Weiss • Children — 2, including Bohuslav "Slávo" Brázda and Jan Brazda

Brázda was born on 30 September 1887 in Rosice, then part of Austria-Hungary, to Bohumil Brázda and Božena Brázdová, née Havránková. His father worked in the hospitality business. The family moved several times and in 1895 settled in Prague, where his father was, among other activities, associated with the operation of Café Slavia. Brázda attended secondary school in Prague before entering the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna in 1904. His teachers included Rudolf Bacher and the Polish painter Kazimierz Pochwalski. After completing his studies he received an imperial scholarship which enabled him to continue his artistic education in Italy.

Brázda settled in Italy during the years preceding the First World War and became part of the international artistic community of Rome. Between approximately 1912 and 1925 he was associated with the Secessione Romana and with artistic currents influenced by Fauvism. During his Roman period he frequented the artistic environment of Villa Strohl Fern, the artists' colony close to Villa Borghese that hosted numerous Italian and foreign painters, sculptors, writers and intellectuals. In Rome Brázda met the Swedish writer and aristocrat Amelie Posse. They married in Rome in 1915.

Following Italy's entry into the First World War against Austria-Hungary in 1915, Brázda's status as an Austro-Hungarian subject resulted in his internment as an enemy alien. Brázda and Posse were interned in the Sardinian town of Alghero in 1915–1916. Their experience in Sardinia was later described by Posse in her autobiographical book Den oförlikneliga fångenskapen, published in English as Sardinian Sideshow. After their release, the couple returned to Rome.

After returning from Sardinia, Brázda became involved in the movement for an independent Czechoslovak state. In Rome he met Milan Rastislav Štefánik, who had arrived in Italy in connection with his political and diplomatic activities. Štefánik established an office at Via Boncompagni 93 and appointed Brázda as his secretary. Brázda also became acquainted with Edvard Beneš and participated in the activities of the first Czechoslovak resistance abroad. In 1917 Brázda painted a portrait of Beneš in Rome. The work is preserved in the collections of the Military History Institute Prague (Vojenský historický ústav Praha). Brázda and Posse were also connected with the visual representation of the Czechoslovak independence movement in Italy. The Military History Institute Prague has documented a flag produced in Rome in May 1918 whose final artistic design was executed by Oskar Brázda and Amelie Posse-Brázdová on the basis of an idea attributed to Štefánik. The flag has been described by the institute as an important predecessor in the development of Czechoslovak state symbolism. Brázda subsequently maintained close relations with leading figures of the newly established Czechoslovakia. In 1921 and 1922 he spent holidays on Capri with President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, with whom he maintained a long friendship.

Following the First World War, Brázda achieved considerable success as a portrait painter in Italy, particularly among Roman aristocratic and upper-class circles. His Roman studio attracted personalities from the worlds of politics, diplomacy, literature, music and art. Czech biographical sources report visitors and sitters associated with his Roman period including Prince Eugen of Sweden, conductor Arturo Toscanini, writer Grazia Deledda, Edvard Beneš, Milan Rastislav Štefánik and Benito Mussolini. In 1924 Brázda held a major exhibition in Rome which was inaugurated by Mussolini. During the same year Brázda received the Order of the Crown of Italy and was received by King Victor Emmanuel III. The first Italian monograph devoted to Brázda was written by Giovanni Marini and published in 1924. Brázda's works entered several Italian collections. Czech sources identify works in collections including the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna in Rome, collections in Sassari, the National Museum of Musical Instruments in Rome and the University of Padua.

In 1925 Brázda and Posse left Italy and moved with their family to the newly established Czechoslovakia. They acquired the Baroque Líčkov Castle, near Žatec, which had reportedly been unoccupied for several decades. The couple restored the property and settled there with their two sons, Bohuslav and Jan. Líčkov became Brázda's principal artistic base, and he continued to work there as a painter and portraitist. Brázda and Posse divorced in 1938. Despite the end of their marriage, they remained in contact in later years.

Following the German occupation of Czechoslovakia, Brázda was forced to leave Líčkov Castle and spent a period in prison. According to Czech biographical sources, he was released following intervention from abroad. After the Second World War he returned to Líčkov. Following the Communist takeover of Czechoslovakia in 1948, the castle was nationalised. Brázda also lost part of his collection of paintings in connection with the so-called millionaire's levy, but was allowed to continue living at Líčkov. He remained there for the rest of his life. Brázda later married Marie Weiss, who had been his model and long-term companion.

Brázda continued painting into old age. On his 90th birthday in 1977 he received the Czechoslovak honorary title of Merited Artist (Zasloužilý umělec). He died at Líčkov on 19 December 1977, aged 90. Following the political changes of 1989, his second wife Marie Weiss-Brázdová recovered property through restitution and established the Oskar Brázda Gallery at Líčkov Castle, displaying works and personal objects associated with the painter.