Vaclav Havel, the first postcommunist president of Czechoslovakia and then of the newly established Czech Republic, died on December 18, 2011, at the age of 75. On the first anniversary of Havel's death, many Czechs are paying tribute to the memory of the writer and democracy icon. The photos collected here are the work of two photographers, Bohdan Holomicek and Tomki Nemec, members of Havel's inner circle who captured moments from his private life as he transitioned from communist-era dissident to head of state.
Vaclav Havel's Legacy, Through The Lenses Of Friends

1
Vaclav Havel in 1975 at his country cottage, called Hradecek, in North Bohemia

2
Havel and his first wife, Olga, at Hradecek in 1974. Olga, who died in 1996, was a fellow dissident and signatory of human rights initiative Charter 77.

3
The Havels with friends Jan and Karla Triska in 1975

4
A photo taken during a long night of conversation at Hradecek in 1975