About the program
What does a country’s design aesthetic reveal about its identity? That’s the animating question behind Identity: A Czech Graphic Design Love Story, a documentary that pairs cultural inquiry with personal narrative. At its center is Nicholas Lowry, a Czech-American auctioneer and obsessive collector who returns to his ancestral homeland to investigate a design tradition, a national identity, and himself.
Dressed in his tartan suit and armed with a healthy dose of humor, Lowry travels across the Czech Republic—from Zlín to Brno, Litomyšl to Pilsen—encountering the visual language of design legends like Alfons Mucha, Ladislav Sutnar, and Josef Váchal. The film weaves through local traditions, historic design landmarks, and conversations with contemporary artists, resulting in a vibrant tribute to the power of visual language.
This screening is presented by Chicago Architecture Center as part of the Architecture & Design Film Festival: CHICAGO. From February 19—22, 2026, the festival presents 10 feature-length screenings in two downtown venues—with many screenings including Q&As with the filmmakers.
