The Red Church decorates Svoboda Avenue and rightfully belongs among the unmissable landmarks of Olomouc. For decades, however, it served the Scientific Library to store books and was closed to the public. After an extensive reconstruction according to the project of architect Miroslav Pospíšil, it was transformed from an inadequate warehouse into a modern cultural and educational center and was ceremonially opened to the public on May 17 last year.
“It will almost be a year since we ceremoniously opened the Red Church to the public, and I am incredibly happy for the high-quality program offer that we offer here, as well as for the patronage that visitors maintain. During that year, almost fifty-one thousand of them passed through the Red Church, which is a really beautiful number,” smiles the director of the Scientific Library, Iveta Ťulpíková, and continues: “When we were at the very beginning of the reconstruction, I had a wish that the Scientific Library would become a more open institution and cooperate more with other institutions in the city, which we In addition to lectures directed by the Scientific Library, Moravian Philharmonic concerts are held here, various concerts and exhibitions are held here, we also cooperate with Palacký University… so I’m really glad that my wish came true people used to go to the Red Church, either for various of these events, or to sit in the cafe in the foyer, so the number of readers and loans also increased, which again I perceive very positively. We are already looking forward to the fact that the weather will allow us to open our garden, which this year we will enrich with umbrellas for even greater comfort for visitors.”
The revitalized Red Church with a modern foyer extension has already won a number of important awards since its opening. “I have to admit that I am very pleased with the interest in this building in the media that deals with architecture and design. As I looked, the mention of the reconstructed Red Church appeared in more than seventy of these media, with almost half of them being world media We value this very much, this feedback is really important and motivating for us. we received a week ago. At the same time, I am very happy that the people of Olomouc have learned to visit these spaces regularly. As the authors of the project, we hoped that this part of the city center would be awakened, and I am sure that it has succeeded,” adds the architect for atelier-r Miroslav Pospíšil.
The scientific library will commemorate its first anniversary with a varied program
On Friday, May 17, Museum Night will take place in the library. The Flauto Armonico Orchestra of the ZUŠ Žerotín accepted the invitation to the church. Subsequently, those interested can look forward to tours of the church with musical performances. The program starts at 5 p.m.
On Thursday, May 23, the Kammerchor St. ensemble will perform in the church. Georg Nördlingen and a group of trumpeters from the Nördlingen Trombone Choir.
On the weekend of May 25 and 26, everyone is invited to the second annual Neighborhood Party. The program includes tours of the church, workshops, theater for children and adults (Institute of Awe, O.Li.VY) or David Tuček’s concert. Plus Theater Quartet will commemorate the year of Czech music and end the weekend celebration itself.
The scientific library has also become the main partner of several benefit concerts. In cooperation with Charita Olomouc, guitarist Petr M. Lutka, an interpreter with a strong life story, will perform in the church on May 21. In his youth, he was noticed by Jaroslav Hutka, who motivated him to move to Prague. He soon joined the emerging singer-songwriter association Šafrán alongside the aforementioned Hutka, Vlasta Třešňák, Dagmar Andrtová Voňková and other authors. Fate brought him to Svátý Kopeček, where he settled.
A day later, on Wednesday, May 22, a benefit concert will take place in the church as part of the nationwide collection of Tucked Shoelaces. The concert is organized by the Olomouc Trend Wheelchair Association, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. The message of the concert is to help people with severe physical handicaps. The main guest will be popular folk-pop singer Václav Lebeda alias Voxel.
The Malý Noe Foundation, Basic Art School Žerotín Olomouc and VKOL invite you to the third of the benefit concerts called Children for Children on May 30. The church will be resounded with the music of world music masters performed by the students of Olomouc ZUŠ Žerotín, the ensemble Flauto Armonico, and the singing accompaniment will be provided by the children’s choir Pelčata from Štěpánov.
Established program cycles will also continue. Zdeněk Orlita from the Museum of Novojičín will speak in the program Views of the past (lecture Holy Pain. Flagellantism in the Early Modern Age). The guest of the University in the church will be Miroslav Orel from the Department of Psychology FF UP (lecture The soul and its brain or the brain and its soul?).
Setters Leona Martinková and Naděžda Špatenková will debate old age and death in the program Art of Aging (The third third decides, Death as a part of life). This time, Jan Palouš from the Astronomical Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic accepted the invitation to the Dialogues about the Universe educational format. It will focus on the formation of stars, small and large star clusters, galaxies, black holes, and news in space research will not be left out. Also planned are talks on the Taiwanese microworld, Chernobyl: the revival of the abandoned zone. A book by Helmut Kopetzký, born in Šumper and of German origin, will be presented.
Two exhibitions will run in the church until mid-June. The first, titled Prolonged Life, will present the restoration of the historical fund of the Scientific Library in Olomouc in cooperation with the Faculty of Restoration of the University of Pardubice in the years 2006-2018.
The author’s exhibition Bedřich Sebera – Madam Praha captures Prague through the lens of Žižková native Bedřich Sebera, one of last year’s NASFO / National Photography Competition winners.
The premises of the Scientific Library will also be enlivened by the works of textile artist and member of the Union of Fine Artists of Olomouc Renáta Jančo, who will lead several workshops focused on textile art here during the year.
The scientific library will also launch a survey focused on the community function of the library. It will be possible to fill it out online on social networks or on prepared forms in the Science Library buildings in Olomouc.
Tags: Red Church celebrate year opening varied program Lectures concerts theater performances Neighbors Party planned
