Za slovem - Rozhovor s Bohumilou Grögerovou – Toman Tylová Barbora (2016)

A book-length interview with the matriarch of Czech visual poetry, Bohumila Grögerová (1921–2014), titled "Behind the Word," was conducted by graphic designer Barbora Toman Tylová before the author's death. The interview reveals the intellectual background from which the life and work of the author, who left an indelible mark on Czech literary history of the 20th century, emerge. The title of the book reflects the poet's desire to understand the word, to go beyond its meaning, to the thoughtful construction of verses, and also suggests the struggle of an almost blind person who, through her work, confronts her physical limits every day. A large part of Bohumila Grögerová's work is inseparably intertwined with her life and professional partner, poet Josef Hiršal, with whom she translated and primarily created experimental poetry in the 1960s. Although Grögerová's work was in creative harmony with Hiršal's, her deep relationship with the word, especially its meaning, arises from a different background. This is also revealed in the author's later, already independent work, in which she returned to traditional literary expression. The visual accompaniment consists of black-and-white documentary photographs from visits to the poetess. A specific artistic part includes text photograms, an original artistic response by Barbora Toman Tylová to the question…