Sdílené město: Německy mluvící architektura - přednáška v Semlerově rezidenci
A four-part lecture cycle dedicated by the Plzeň association to "German-speaking architecture" will continue with the second part on Monday, November 3, 2025, at 6 PM at the Semler Residence in Plzeň. After an introductory section focused on the architecture of Czech Germans during the period of 1848–1918 and the interwar architecture of German-speaking architects in Prague, the current part of the series will concentrate on interwar construction in an area approximately defined by Karlovy Vary, Plzeň, Prague, and Ústí nad Labem.
It was precisely in the North Bohemian Ústí, where Czech and German cultures directly intersected, that one of the most remarkable stories of Czechoslovak architecture unfolded in the era between the two world wars. As architect Pavel Prouza will further introduce in his contribution titled "German Social Democratic Architecture in Ústí nad Labem 1918–1938," thanks to the leadership of the city headed by Mayor Leopold Pölzl and architect Franz Josef Arnold from the municipal construction office, a unique complex of social housing with experimental tenement houses was built.
In the second part of the evening, historian Michael Rund, director of the Sokolov Museum, will present architects Rudolf Wels and Karel Ernstberger. The life and work of these natives of the Plzeň region testify to both the dynamic development of Central European architecture in the early decades of the 20th century and the immediate influence of revolutionary societal changes on the fates of German-speaking creators in the Czech lands. Both architects underwent training in Vienna – while Wels studied at the prestigious Vienna Academy under Friedrich Ohmann, Karel Ernstberger received his architectural education under Otto Wagner. Although the fates of both architects differed significantly, their later activities in Karlovy Vary connected them, in another region with a strong German-speaking milieu. Ernstberger was previously active in Plzeň, while Wels also worked in Prague, becoming a film architect and designing glass for the Moser company.
Admission to the event, prepared in cooperation with the West Bohemian Gallery in Plzeň, is 60 CZK. Tickets will be available on-site and in advance at plzenskavstupenka.cz.
Ing. arch. Pavel Prouza, Ph.D. studied architecture at the University of Applied Sciences in Frankfurt am Main and at the Faculty of Architecture of the ČVUT in Prague; he obtained his doctorate at the Institute of Art History at Charles University in Prague. He gained work experience in Frankfurt am Main, collaborated with the studio Masák & Partner, and has been freelance since 2003. Together with his wife Jana, he runs the studio Riofrio Architects. The Prouzas have also revitalized the brewery in Lobče over more than fifteen years and received an award from the Europa Nostra federation. Pavel Prouza is also behind the initiative Mělnické vily, which aims to rescue and restore a set of three Art Nouveau buildings by Bohumil Hübshmann in Mělník.
Ing. Michael Rund graduated from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of the West Bohemian University in Plzeň. Since November 2009, he has been working as the director of the Sokolov Museum, a public organization of the Karlovy Vary Region that focuses on the history of the Sokolov district and mining. Michael Rund is the author or co-author of the following books: "In the Footsteps of Rudolf Wels" (Life and Work of a Student and Collaborator of Adolf Loos), "Famous Villas of the Plzeň and Karlovy Vary Regions," "Art in Sokolov," "Painter David Friedmann – Witness of the Holocaust," "Architect Karl Ernstberger – The Life and Work of a Forgotten Student of Wagner," or "The Mining House in Sokolov."
It was precisely in the North Bohemian Ústí, where Czech and German cultures directly intersected, that one of the most remarkable stories of Czechoslovak architecture unfolded in the era between the two world wars. As architect Pavel Prouza will further introduce in his contribution titled "German Social Democratic Architecture in Ústí nad Labem 1918–1938," thanks to the leadership of the city headed by Mayor Leopold Pölzl and architect Franz Josef Arnold from the municipal construction office, a unique complex of social housing with experimental tenement houses was built.
In the second part of the evening, historian Michael Rund, director of the Sokolov Museum, will present architects Rudolf Wels and Karel Ernstberger. The life and work of these natives of the Plzeň region testify to both the dynamic development of Central European architecture in the early decades of the 20th century and the immediate influence of revolutionary societal changes on the fates of German-speaking creators in the Czech lands. Both architects underwent training in Vienna – while Wels studied at the prestigious Vienna Academy under Friedrich Ohmann, Karel Ernstberger received his architectural education under Otto Wagner. Although the fates of both architects differed significantly, their later activities in Karlovy Vary connected them, in another region with a strong German-speaking milieu. Ernstberger was previously active in Plzeň, while Wels also worked in Prague, becoming a film architect and designing glass for the Moser company.
Admission to the event, prepared in cooperation with the West Bohemian Gallery in Plzeň, is 60 CZK. Tickets will be available on-site and in advance at plzenskavstupenka.cz.
Ing. arch. Pavel Prouza, Ph.D. studied architecture at the University of Applied Sciences in Frankfurt am Main and at the Faculty of Architecture of the ČVUT in Prague; he obtained his doctorate at the Institute of Art History at Charles University in Prague. He gained work experience in Frankfurt am Main, collaborated with the studio Masák & Partner, and has been freelance since 2003. Together with his wife Jana, he runs the studio Riofrio Architects. The Prouzas have also revitalized the brewery in Lobče over more than fifteen years and received an award from the Europa Nostra federation. Pavel Prouza is also behind the initiative Mělnické vily, which aims to rescue and restore a set of three Art Nouveau buildings by Bohumil Hübshmann in Mělník.
Ing. Michael Rund graduated from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of the West Bohemian University in Plzeň. Since November 2009, he has been working as the director of the Sokolov Museum, a public organization of the Karlovy Vary Region that focuses on the history of the Sokolov district and mining. Michael Rund is the author or co-author of the following books: "In the Footsteps of Rudolf Wels" (Life and Work of a Student and Collaborator of Adolf Loos), "Famous Villas of the Plzeň and Karlovy Vary Regions," "Art in Sokolov," "Painter David Friedmann – Witness of the Holocaust," "Architect Karl Ernstberger – The Life and Work of a Forgotten Student of Wagner," or "The Mining House in Sokolov."
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