The works in this rare collection of photographs and assemblages by Czech artist Běla Kolářová date from 1956-1969, spanning what is widely acknowledged to be her best decade. Self-taught, she first began working with a camera in the mid-1950s, however in the early 1960s her practice grew away from images produced by a camera to photograms, in which she explored the process of image making though use of darkroom experiments.

The Daughter of Nisus was Scylla, a princess in Greek mythology who removed a single lock of her father’s hair (granting invincibility) to give to Minos, who had won her heart. Minos, disgusted by her lack of filial devotion, left and ultimately Scylla was killed by her father (in the guise of a seagull to which he had metamorphosed on his death).

Běla Kolářová’s place in 20th century European art history has been reassessed in recent years. Her work has been acquired by major museums and included in internationally, critically acclaimed exhibitions, such as the Adventures of the Black Square at the Whitechapel Gallery (London, 2015); and Transmissions: Art in Eastern Europe and Latin America, 1960-1980, at MoMA (New York, 2016).