The Slavic epic was also exhibited in the Veletržní palace in the past, now it is in Moravské Krumlov. Photo: archive
The leadership of the capital city of Prague did not reach an agreement with the representatives of the Prague Castle on the possible location of Alfons Mucha’s Slavic epic cycle in the Imperial Stables. The reason is that the Castle had the premises repaired, uses them and it would be necessary to rebuild them again. However, if a suitable free space appeared at the Castle and there was an agreement, the metropolis would place the paintings there. Deputy Mayor Jiří Pospíšil (TOP 09) said this to ČTK today.
The paintings are now in Moravské Krumlov. Prague is negotiating with the Crestyl company about their possible temporary location in the palace on Wenceslas Square, which the company is building. The cycle consists of 20 large canvases, which Mucha painted for 18 years starting in 1910.
“The variant of placing the epic in the former horse stable is not realistic. The castle uses it as a depository and relatively recently renovated it for tens of millions in order to be able to use it in this way, so it is unrealistic to rebuild it again for the exhibition of the epic,” said Pospíšil.
Pospíšil told Chancellor Milan Vašin that if space were to become available in the Castle grounds in the future where paintings could be permanently placed, Prague would be interested in arranging the placement of the epic. “If such a space were to appear, we are interested. We are still negotiating with Crestyle, but this is still a temporary solution,” said Pospíšil.
In addition to the future palace of the Crestyl company on Wenceslas Square, the list of possible places in the past included, for example, the Výstaviště or Holešovická tržnice. In their cases, however, the premises turned out to be unsuitable. According to the deputy, the paintings will remain at the castle in Moravské Krumlov until the capital finds premises.
Mucha, together with the industrialist Charles R. Crane, who commissioned the paintings from the painter, donated the work to Prague upon completion, with the condition that it would build a worthy exhibition space for it. Now the canvases are in the castle in Moravské Krumlov. The loan is agreed until 2026.
The epic has been accompanied by disputes over its ownership for many years. While the painter’s relative John Mucha withdrew the lawsuit after years after an agreement with the municipality last year, the second heir Jarmila Mucha Plocková filed her own lawsuit to determine the owner.
According to her, the agreement with John Mucha is disadvantageous for the city and, in particular, does not definitively resolve the issue of ownership of the epic. As a preliminary measure, she demanded that Prague not be allowed to enter into a contract with Crestyle until the court has decided on her lawsuit in the matter of ownership. However, in February of this year, the District Court for Prague 1 canceled the initially approved preliminary measure.
The Slavic epic cycle consists of 20 large canvases. Permanent premises for the Slavic epic have been sought in the metropolis since the beginning of the last century.
