Where Tavik Frantisek Simon's Prints Actually Live

Simon's printed work is scattered across Czech institutions, auction archives and print dealer catalogues. Here is how to see the full range without flying blind.

Auvrique Editorial · Fine Art Editions

The short answer

The most complete holdings of Tavik Frantisek Simon's prints are in Czech public collections, above all in Prague, where his etchings and colour prints are concentrated. Online, the fastest route is museum database searches, auction result archives and specialist print dealer catalogues, which between them document several hundred of his compositions.

Start with the Czech institutions

Simon was Czech, working from the 1900s until his death in 1942, and the core of his printed output stayed in his home country. Public collections in Prague hold the deepest runs of his etchings and colour prints, and these are the places most likely to have complete series rather than single sheets. If you want to see the full span of a career, an institutional collection beats any commercial source.

The practical problem is access. Not every holding is digitised, and Czech museum databases can be awkward to search from abroad. Try the artist's name in both its Czech form, Tavík František Šimon, and the anglicised spelling, because catalogues are inconsistent. A search that returns nothing under one spelling often succeeds under the other.

Auction archives fill the gaps

For a working overview of what exists, auction result databases are surprisingly effective. Simon's prints appear regularly at Central European auction houses, and each listing usually carries a title, a date, a technique and an image. Scroll a few years of results and you assemble a rough catalogue of his range, from Paris street scenes to Japanese subjects to Czech landscapes.

This route also tells you what his work sells for, which is useful context even if you only want to look. Original etchings by Simon trade in a modest range, often in the low hundreds of dollars or euros, though exceptional colour prints can go higher. Prices vary with condition and subject, so treat any single result as one data point rather than a rule.

A few specialist print dealers keep Simon stock and list it online with photographs. Their catalogues are worth browsing because dealers tend to photograph well and describe technique precisely, which helps you learn the difference between his etchings and his colour woodcut experiments.

Where to look first

Czech public collections in Prague, searched under both spellings of his name
Auction result archives, filtered by the past five to ten years
Specialist print dealer catalogues in Central Europe
Digital museum databases that index Czech graphic art

Reproductions for the wall

Seeing a print in an archive and living with one are different pursuits. If the goal is a Simon on your wall, reproduction editions are the realistic route for most people, since surviving originals are scattered and often unframed. A snowy Czech landscape works quietly in a cool room, and something like Landscape in Snow as a framed print shows how well his winter subjects translate.

His harbour and lakeside scenes read differently. The Port of Pully on canvas carries the softer tonal range that Simon developed in his colour work, and it suits a room with plain walls and natural light. For a darker interior, Red Sand and Snow in a frame gives you his warmer register instead.

Whichever route you take, match the subject to the room before you match anything else. Simon's prints are tonal rather than loud, and they reward that.

The deepest collection of Simon's prints sits in Prague, and no search engine will hand it to you in one page.

Source	What you find	Effort
Czech museum collections	Complete series, scholarly records	High, some travel or email
Auction archives	Titles, dates, prices, images	Low, free to search
Print dealers	Individual sheets, precise technique notes	Moderate
Reproduction editions	Framed and canvas versions for the wall	Low

Routes to Simon's printed work

Key takeaways

Prague's public collections hold the deepest runs of Simon's prints.
Search under both the Czech and anglicised spellings of his name.
Auction archives are the fastest free way to map his full range.
Reproduction editions are the practical route for actually living with the work.

Related questions

Are original Simon etchings expensive?

Generally no. His etchings surface regularly at Central European auctions and often sell in the low hundreds of dollars or euros. Larger colour prints and especially fine impressions can reach higher figures. Condition, subject and framing all move the price, so compare several results before drawing conclusions.

Why is his name spelled differently on different sites?

The Czech form is Tavík František Šimon, with diacritics that English-language sites frequently drop. Catalogues and databases index him under several variants, so a search that fails under one spelling often succeeds under another. Try at least two versions before assuming a collection holds nothing.

Can I buy a Simon reproduction instead of an original?

Yes. Framed and canvas editions of his work are available through print sellers, and they cost a fraction of an original etching. A reproduction will not carry the plate marks and paper character of an etching, but it preserves the image faithfully and suits everyday display.

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