Krychle versus trojúhelník: karikatury kubismu ve Francii a Čechách (1911–1918)

This article examines the various perspectives on cubism and cubist artists presented in caricature drawings published in Czech and French humourist magazines in the early part of the 20th century and captures how this avant-garde movement was viewed in 1911–1918. It seeks not just to highlight the similarities and differences between Czech and French caricatures of cubism in the time before the First World War and in the altered circumstances of the wartime years, but also to identify the popular perception of cubism as the dominant 'ism' at that time. The harsh and aggressive nature of some of the caricatures is analysed from the perspective of art historian Carl Einstein's theory of decomposition in cubism. The article concludes with a discussion of the formal aspects of the drawings and an interpretation of the use of triangles and cubes in caricatures of cubism.