The jubilee tenth year of the open buildings festival Open House Prague will take place this year from May 13 to 19, 2024. While a rich accompanying program will be prepared in the week of May 13, on the weekend of May 18 and 19, the festival will make 115 buildings and spaces accessible for free throughout the capital city. The list of open buildings is published at www.openhousepraha.cz/festival-2024/.
Check out the festival promo spot that reveals some festival news.
“Open House Prague will allow the public to see the buildings associated with important Czech architects whose life anniversaries we are commemorating this year – for example Josef Fuchs, Oldřich Tyl, Adolf Benš, Josef Fanta, Jan Gillar, Karel Hubáček and others. At the same time, it will focus on the topic of accessibility and openness of the city to all groups of residents,” says festival director Klára Veselá.
Buildings and anniversaries – Fuchs, Tyl, Benš, Fanta, Hubáček
During the festival weekend, several functionalist gems will be opened, reminiscent of important Czechoslovak architects. The first is the building of the former restaurant of the Štvanice winter stadium by Josef Fuchs (*130 years old). The stadium has served several times in the past as the venue for the World Hockey Championship, and after 1959 it was used as a skating venue for the public. However, its condition gradually fell into disrepair and in 2011 it was demolished, despite its monument protection. Only the building of the cafe, where the Fuchs2 club is located, was spared.
Visitors will also be able to see the technical facilities or the roof terrace of the Trade Fair Palace, one of the projects of architects Josef Fuchs and Oldřich Tyl (*140 years old). At the time of its creation, this eight-story constructivist building, the largest of its kind in the world, was among the absolute pinnacle of modern architecture. In addition to the exhibition spaces, there was a cinema, a restaurant and a café on the roof terrace. However, in 1974, i.e. 50 years ago, the palace was destroyed by a huge fire. After long discussions, it was decided to restore this exceptional building for the needs of the National Gallery. The list of buildings includes one more inconspicuous realization by the architect Oldřich Tyl – Garage Pod Slovany in Nové Město. At the time of their greatest glory, the garages offered first-class service for the cars of their wealthy clientele, and some details from their rich equipment have been preserved to this day.
“In connection with this year’s anniversaries, in cooperation with Zdenek Lukeš, we have prepared a lecture dedicated to the work of Oldřich Tyl and Josef Fuchs as part of the accompanying program on Tuesday, May 14 from 6 p.m., which will take place in the non-traditional premises of the Fuchs2 club. The building of the former restaurant by the busy main road is the last memento of the once famous and now demolished winter stadium complex on the island of Štvanice, where sports history was written. The lecture will introduce not only the history of the place, but people will also have the opportunity to see how the space has come to life in recent years with alternative culture and art installations,” says Andrea Šenkyříková, creative director of the festival.
During the weekend, interested parties will also have a look at the Bílá Primary and Kindergarten, described as a small jewel of Czechoslovak functionalism, which brought its very young author Jan Gillar (*120 years old) international recognition. The school complex was completed ninety years ago on the model of Dutch and German open-air schools, its foundation was a reinforced concrete skeleton. Emphasis was placed on maximizing the area of classrooms, their natural lighting and connection with the surrounding greenery.
Representatives of Czech functionalism also include buildings by Adolf Benš (*140 years old) such as the building of Elektrických podriník Praha – Bubenská 1 and Terminal 4 at Václav Havel Airport.
This year, the festival will commemorate 70 years since the death of Josef Fanta by making available the neo-Renaissance building of the Hlávka student dormitory, which was ceremonially opened 120 years ago. Its facade is decorated with sgraffito with motifs of students, national emblems and the St. Wenceslas eagle. After several years of reconstruction, breathtaking art nouveau spaces will be opened in the north wing of the Fanta building of the Main Station. The government lounge on the 1st platform, where Emperor Francis Joseph I or President TG Masaryk spent time waiting for the train, will also be available for viewing. The building of the Ministry of Trade and Industry of the Czech Republic with its iconic glass dome, into which people will be able to climb during the festival, will also remind of Fant’s work.
The last jubilant of this year, Karel Hubáček (*100 years old), will be remembered by the non-traditional artistic space of the DISK Theater with a submarine-shaped roof. Visitors will be able to see not only the theater facilities, but also the intricate underground passages, the history of which dates back to ancient medieval times. Karel Hubáček also participated with his architectural studio SIAL in the reconstruction of the already mentioned Trade Fair Palace.
News
The Open House Prague festival will offer more than 35 novelties in the program on the territory of 13 city districts. One of them, for example, is the magnificent Palace of the First Czech Insurance Bank on the Smetana embankment in the floral Art Nouveau style, which today houses the Goethe-Institut. Few would have guessed that a sauna, which is still functional today, is hidden in these magnificent premises, which was built here in the 1970s, when the Embassy of the German Democratic Republic was located in the building. The sauna will be open for viewing during the festival weekend, as well as the lavish and well-kept interiors. The foyer of the building will also include the Kafka Family Photo Album exhibition, which will offer many previously unpublished photos from the life of Franz Kafka’s family, and will thus commemorate this year’s 100 years since his death.
Another of the novelties is the Palace of Škodových závodů, the current seat of the City Hall of the Capital City of Prague, which was created according to the design of the prominent Czech architect Pavel Janák. As part of the festival, representative Škoda lounges with extraordinary art and craft interior decoration and restored period furniture will be on display.
The magnificent Neo-Renaissance building of the Old Town Market in Rytířská Street will also be exceptionally open to visitors. It was created according to the design of Jindřich Fialka, the architect of the water tower on Letná. Last time there were shops and a supermarket here. The entire building was subsequently closed in 2020 as part of plans for a total renovation with the aim of restoring its original function. However, a year later, the city council abandoned it, and since then this historical monument in the city center is still waiting for its restoration.
Part of this year’s program is the Palace of Městská pojišťovna on Staroměstské náměstí, where today the Ministry for Regional Development of the Czech Republic is located. The author of the design of this art nouveau building, Osvald Polívka, invited the biggest names of the art scene of the time to collaborate, and thanks to this, we can still admire the sculptural works of Bohuslav Schnirch or Ladislav Šaloun here today. The picturesque atrium and premises of the Václav Havel Library will be made accessible by the classicist Deym Palace, where Karel Schwarzenberg, whose family owns the palace, also had an apartment in it after 1989. Near the busy Republiky Square, the Municipal House will also open, today the seat of the House of Foreign Cooperation, which is an important late classicist monument. This year, for the first time, the festival also managed to gain access to the cubist private villa Na Libušinca, one of three unique residential houses on the Rašín embankment, designed by the prominent Czech architect Emil Králíček, the author of the iconic cubist lamp on Jungmann Square.
For the first time, several buildings within the grounds of the Prague Castle will join the festival program. It will be possible to visit, for example, the Presidential Residence. It was originally designed by the architect Pavel Janák for Edvard Beneš, but he did not see it completed, so the house was only used by communist presidents. Since 1989, the house has hardly been inhabited and was mostly used as a background for press conferences or meetings. In recent years, however, it has undergone extensive renovations, during which care was taken to preserve Janák’s original elements. Another extraordinary object in the Royal Garden will also be open to visitors – the new orangery by Eva Jiřičná, patron of the festival. The construction of this high-tech building made of glass and steel was initiated by the wife of the president, Olga Havlová. The operation of the greenhouse and the care of heat-loving plants are ensured by a number of automatic systems, and two small fountains are part of the greenhouse – the first by the Slovenian architect Jože Plečnik and the second by Otto Rothmayer. The last open building at Prague Castle will be the Lobkowicz Palace, which elegantly mixes Renaissance and Baroque building elements. Today, the palace is the only privately owned part of Prague Castle that serves as a museum with the valuable collection of the Lobkowicz family, which is considered the largest and oldest private art collection in the Czech Republic.
One of the largest modern archive sites in the world in Prague’s Chodovec will celebrate 30 years since its opening this year, and on that occasion those interested will be able to take a look inside it. The National Archives and the State Regional Archives in Prague will be made available. The building is dominated by three tall storage blocks with striking colored ceramic cladding, which tower over the surrounding buildings. Visitors can visit the local library, but also the local cinema, research rooms, depositories and disinfection line for archives.
For the first time, the monumental three-winged historical building of the National Archives located on Milady Horáková Avenue in Dejvice, which today houses the directorate, the library and the 1st department of the archive, will also be made accessible. During the festival tour, it will also be possible to look into the former apartment of the director of the archive, and a facsimile of the so-called Golden Bull of Sicily, issued on September 26, 1212 in Basel, which is a document of paramount importance for the Czech monarchs and the Czech lands, will be exhibited.
Accessibility and inclusion
Even this year, the organizers are trying to break down barriers and open the city to everyone. Accessibility is one of the main themes and will be interwoven across the entire program – be it in the form of special tours for visitors with visual impairments, the deaf and children, debates on the accessibility of the city, a workshop dedicated to the physical accessibility of buildings or interactive city games Open Senses. It is being prepared by the students of the Department of Arts Management of the University of Economics in cooperation with Open House Prague for the festival weekend, and its goal will be to experience firsthand what challenges people with various forms of handicaps have to face every day when moving around the city. The inclusive program is possible thanks to participation in the Open House Europe project with the support of the European Union.
Volunteers
The Open House Prague festival is a community event. The buildings will be opened thanks to the involvement of hundreds of volunteers, but also to the owners, administrators of the buildings and employees of the companies that are based in them. Anyone interested in taking a look behind the scenes of event preparations can sign up and help with the implementation or coordination of operations. The ambassador of the volunteer program is presenter, model, former spokesperson of the Minister for Human Rights and National Minorities and volunteer Lejla Abbasová. Watch the recruitment video.
Info center
From May 13, a festival info center will open in the premises of the Hybernská Campus (Hybernská 998/4, Prague 1) and will offer the possibility to purchase the Festival Guide, limited edition merchandise and other materials. Opening hours: Mon–Fri 10 am–6 pm, Sat–Sun 9 am–7 pm.
Practical information
Most buildings (and spaces) are open both weekend days from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., but there are exceptions. People can find specific opening times and other information (e.g. about accessibility) at www.openhousepraha.cz/festival-2024. Entrance to the buildings is free without the need for prior registration. Tours will be arranged continuously or at pre-announced times (blind, deaf, children or AJ). People will be able to find out information about the current operation in the open buildings in the new festival application, which will be downloadable for both Android and iOS systems at the beginning of May.
About Open House Prague
Open House Praha, z. ú., is a non-state non-profit organization that organizes a festival of the same name with a weekly accompanying program during one (usually) weekend in May. The concept of the festival originated in London in 1992 under the leadership of founder Victoria Thornton, who was awarded the Order of the British Empire for her work. The world festival, for which the organization received an international license, was held in the Czech Republic for the first time in 2015 and has since become one of the most important cultural events in Prague. The patron of the Prague festival is Eva Jiřičná, an architect of Czech origin living in London, who was at the beginning of Open House London, was part of it for 20 years as a member of the board of directors, but also as a volunteer in the buildings and forms an imaginary bridge between Prague and the founding city. Open House Prague is a proud part of the international network Open House Worldwide, which unites 60 cities on 6 continents of the world, in which Open House festivals take place. The jubilee 10th year of the event will take place in 2024. In addition to organizing the festival, the organization also engages in various year-round activities (for volunteers, partners, the club, the public), including educational programs for children, young adults and people with disabilities.
Source: Open House Prague
Tags: Open House Prague festival open city celebrate tenyear anniversary
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