"I was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia, on November  29,1944, at the end of the World War II.

My father was an architect and my mother worked in a publishing house editing children's books. My father was also a famous cartoonist, working for newspapers and literary magazines. He also participated in the creation of cartoons made in Prague.

We lived in Pankrac, an upscale area of ​​Prague, not far from the political prison.

My parents used to invite friends very often, mostly intellectuals from the artistic or literary world, and, as we grew up,  my brother and I, had the authorization and privilege to participate early in the evenings, with strict instructions not to repeat anything we had heard at school the next day. And the truth is, theremarks we heard  were not really in the line of the party. Czechoslovakia was then a communist country, and red ears were open and remained constantly on the lookout for any disrespectful talk.

As a child, I loved to draw, as children usually do, but I especially Ioved watching the illustrated books for children but also for adults, with reproductions of paintings from all around the world. And, to be honest, I had a preference for female nudes made by great artists like Rembrandt, Botticelli, Goya, Ingres or Cranach. They already enchanted me since I was young!

As I was not very good at math, instead of following a traditional school curriculum and listening to my parents, at the age of 15, I started a school specializing in art, which ended up with the baccalaureate and students fully prepared for higher artistic studies.

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Výtvarná škola was a school where we learnt all the crafts. Of course, we studied the basics of art history, but we mainly focused on  drawing, etching, lithography, typography, layout of books, anatomy, painting, grinfing techniques and preparation of colors, poster creation, illustration, basics of paintings restoration and copying of old masters. After 4 years of studies leading to a bachelor's degree, I joined the Fine Arts. Therefore, we had to pass an entrance examination. Each year amongst 300 candidates, only 2-3 students were accepted per atelier. I was amongst these happy few, and during the first year, we learned drawing from live models and artistic anatomy. Only gradually, starting from the third year, could we start the free creation.
Despite the political situation, art education in Prague was excellent, giving us a solid knowledge of different techniques before being very slowly allowed to produce a personal creation.

During the summer in 1965, I made my first trip to France and that's where I met Francoise, my future wife.

In 1967 we were married and Dominique, our daughter, was born on New Year's Eve.

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In 1968, after the revolution in May in Paris, we went to Czechoslovakia, so I could finish my studies at the Academy of Fine Arts and obtain my state diploma. I was very happy to participate in the "Prague Spring" and the wind of freedom that blew with the arrival of Dubcek filled us with hope. Unfortunately the spring lasted only the space of a spring and on August 21, 1968 the Russians invaded Prague. The following years were very difficult. I graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague in 1969, and we managed to return to France, to Saint-Germain-en-Laye, end of 1970.

I obtained the French nationality in 1975 and I lived a few years in Holland, fabulous country to study Old Masters, from 1977 to 1980.

Member of the "salon d'Automne"  since 1987, I also am in charge of the group "visionirique - étrange"  of the "salon Comparaisons" since 2002.
Leading the Magic Realism movement in France, I gathered the best French and foreign artists of this movet within the "Libellule, Contemporary Renaissance" movement. Every year I give a theme and a format to the Libellule's artists, and we launch a new collection at the "salon Comparaisons", which is part of the fair "Art Capital", held at the Grand Palais in Paris."    www.libelluleart.com

 

​Furthermore, as a member of the Cultural Commission of the City of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, where he served for several years
Lukáš KÁNDL organized in 1991 the exhibition "Apocalypse" and 3 biennials of Fantastic Art.

Lukáš KÁNDL is also a sculptor and poster creator. Winner in 1985 of the poster competition for the Trophée Lancôme, he was the official poster artist of the Festival of Litterature in Saint Etienne (France) for 16 years, creating a collection of posters that have met a great success.

His great talent has earned him many Prizes and Honors.
The work of Lukáš Kándl has had the opportunity to travel around the world for numerous exhibitions. You can find more details about this in the Exhibitions section of this website.

The art of Lukáš Kándl is often linked to the surrealist movement but it mught be closer to magic realism. Kándl explains that he composes his paintings as text songs, to inspire reflection, provoke or amuse. They always arouse lots of questions.
An overview of his work is available in the Gallery section of this website.

In January 2016 Kándl completed his 1000th painting called "Paradise."

An art book presenting his works and the thoughts surrounding his work is available in the Shop section .
It can be ordered online.