The Sutnar Faculty has achieved another success in the Graphic of the Year competition

Anna Dlabalová and Viktorie Tomášová from the Sutnar Faculty received awards at the Grafika roku (Graphic of the Year) competition. The jury praised their prints, Mortuary and Pause. The students succeeded among more than five hundred submitted works.

Young printmakers from the Ladislav Sutnar Faculty of Design and Art at the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen (FDU) achieved success in the Grafika roku 2025. The jury selected from a total of 534 works. Anna Dlabalová was awarded in the small-format student category, while Viktorie Tomášová impressed with her serigraphy.

“The success of Sutnar Faculty students confirms the faculty’s strong position in printmaking and its ability to develop both traditional techniques and contemporary experimental approaches,” said Said Ismail, assistant at the Graphic Art studio of the Faculty of Design and Art and a member of the Czech Association of Printmakers Hollar.

Anna Dlabalová, a student of the Comics and Illustration for Children studio, received the main award in the small-format student category for her print Mortuary (Márnice). The lithograph was created in the Graphic Art studio under the guidance of Jan Kocman.

Viktorie Tomášová, primarily a student of the Book and Paper Shaping studio, also developed her award-winning work during an internship in the same studio. Her print Pause (Zastavení), created as a screen print through lace under the guidance of Mikoláš Axmann and Bedřich Kocman, received the Serigraphy Award in the student category at the Graphic of the Year competition.

The Sutnar Faculty has a strong track record in the competition. In addition to the main awards, the Graphic of the Year Foundation also presents the Vladimír Boudník Award. This prestigious prize has previously been awarded to Mikoláš Axmann, head of the Graphic Art studio at the faculty. This year, the jury awarded it to Martin Velíšek, who teaches at the Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem.

The exhibition of this year’s works is on view at the Karolinum in Prague until May 10. It will then travel to Ostrava and, in autumn, to a gallery in the DEPO2015 complex in Pilsen. Further details about the competition and exhibition are available on the Graphic of the Year competition website.

The Graphic of the Year competition has been held since 1994 and maps contemporary printmaking—from traditional techniques such as lithography, intaglio, and screen printing to digital and experimental approaches. Alongside established artists, students are also given space, often introducing new directions. The 32nd edition confirmed a shift toward open, interdisciplinary thinking, in which not only the final form but also the creative process play a key role.