Antonín Mikšík

* 1960

  • „Workmen coming back from work would stop by for a beer, so we used to call it Čtverka, meaning the fouth factory hall. As it was aside from the city, cut off the park, it was all quiet and nobody complained. We used to enjoy various music events and so on. That would not be possible in the centre. So we used to hang out there. After I came back from the military service, I used to go there for almost ten years. It was not about getting drunk, but rather having a chat, about music and all. Then we exchanged various samizdat and underground recordings, some materials to signs from VONS, Several sentences and so on. It all happened there.“

  • “In 1983 I went to Žabčice to a music event. The first year in 1982, when I was still service in the army, it went all fine. In 1983 it was also allowed, but two hours prior to the beginning they banned it. There were crowds of people and the police chased us back to the train with batons. Along with my friends we went to Brno and went to the pub Střelnice. A meadow, sun, we played guitars, it was simply cool. All of the sudden tons of police cars arrived and policemen with batons and dogs without muzzles; they began beating us. I was also beaten by a police dog. It was pretty rough. That was my very first clash with reality.”

  • "It was organised by Janek (Jan Soldán - author of the book). It was the second event. Before that, he had his wedding there and that all happened peacefully. The other one was attended by police cars with cops and dogs. A policeman took me there because he knew I had a camera. I had lots of tapes in my pockets, so I thought it all sucked. He wanted me to pull the film, so I unscrewed it and lit it. Then I was dragged to the car. I asked if I could take a leek or else I could piss myself inside the car. He sent me to the fence. I could see that they had problems with other people, so I disappeared through a hole in the fence and went to the train station. A bunch of people were waiting there for a train, and then they came back with the dogs again. With one buddy of mine, who played in the Obligatory Blind Band, we ran through the meadow into the woods. He was carrying his baritone saxophone on his back, but he could not run fast enough, so he hid it in bushes. We saw them chasing us with their dogs. It was like some stupid Russian film. We ran through the forest through the puddles for them to lose track. When I think about it now, it seems funny. They never got us, but probably discovered and seized the baritone saxophone because we have never found it.”

  • Celé nahrávky
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    Šumperk, 07.11.2017

    (audio)
    délka: 02:16:34
    nahrávka pořízena v rámci projektu Stories of 20th Century
  • 2

    Šumperk, Eye Direct, 08.02.2018

    (audio)
    délka: 01:32:15
    nahrávka pořízena v rámci projektu Stories of the 20th Century TV
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There is sincerity and longing for inner freedom in underground

Antonín Mikšík - 1985
Antonín Mikšík - 1985
zdroj: archiv pamětníka

Antonín Mikšík was born on 2 May, 1960 in Šternberk. He spent his childhood and youth in a block of flats in Uničov. Already during studies he became one of so called „mánička“, which gathered in the town in nowadays legendary pub called Čtverka. At the times of normalisation it was the local centre of the other culture. Young people were exchanging samizdat, signing petitions, screening index movies, organised various musical and sports events and also exhibitions. Antonín Mikšík documented these underground events and today has got many unique photos. He experienced many police interventions and three times was interrogated by the secret police. He presented his artworks at non-official exhibitions in Uničov, where he also participated organisationally. A year after the fall of communistic regime he married Marta Košárková, with whom he later had two sons, Matěj and Antonín. In 1998 he finished studying artistic photography at the Silesian university. He presented his photos in about ninety exhibitions, among others in Poland, Germany and Spain and also shot several movies. In 2017 lived in the village of Paseka.