Jiří Suchomel: Architecture of Collaboration - Exhibition at NTK

Exhibitions FUA30 and Jiří Suchomel: Architecture of Cooperation are held on the occasion of the 80th birthday of Professor Jiří Suchomel and the 30th anniversary of the founding of FUA TUL. 

Jiří Suchomel: Architecture of Cooperation  
A successful architectural work is usually the result of the collaboration of a group of people who seek, through open dialogue, a way to apply and develop an individual’s initiating idea. In looking at the works of architect Jiří Suchomel, this nature of building art comes to the forefront. As a member of Školka Sial, he contributed his authorship to a number of notable and internationally recognized designs as the head of studio 2 at the Liberec Stavoprojekt since 1985, and after the political upheaval in 1989 as one of the partners and director of the Sial office. Since the mid-90s, Jiří Suchomel's focus has shifted to the newly established Faculty of Architecture in Liberec. He influenced it as well, bringing the teaching experience from the University of Michigan along with the approach from Školka Sial. Notably, the way of working at Jedlová in the 1970s and early 1980s should be highlighted, where young architects, thanks to Karel Hubáček and Miroslav Masák, could deepen their abilities through collective effort and discussions among themselves and with invited experts from other fields despite the difficult times. It can be stated that important designs by architects at Jedlová emerged at the turn of the 70s and 80s during the so-called normalization. Nevertheless, it should be emphasized that their nature does not belong to the closed and bleak world behind the Iron Curtain. In the vicinity of Ještěd, buildings were proposed that, through the thoughtfulness of their approach and formal solutions, rank among the best that architecture in contemporary Europe had to offer. This is evidenced by the fact that the results of the joint search received an international response. Although the exhibition has the character of a focused retrospective on the recent past that is surprisingly slipping away from living memory, Jiří Suchomel continues to pursue current architectural possibilities. This is convincingly demonstrated by the author's interest in 3D printing technology in construction. However, the architect's energy-saving building solutions from the late 70s and 80s already appear to be prescient today. It can be summarized that Jiří Suchomel's work has persisted since the late 1960s to the present day with the goal of seeking dignified contemporary architecture that reflects technological progress and builds a close relationship between humanity and the world.
Filip Šenk, curator of the exhibition

Organizer: Faculty of Art and Architecture TUL
Curator: Filip Šenk
Image editing: Jiří Suchomel
Models: Ivo Louda / TAKJAK
Architectural solution: Vladimír Balda, Jiří Žid
Graphic design: Petr Krejzek / ReDesign
Texts: Filip Šenk, Ondřej Hojda
Translations: André Crous
Language editing: Jana Palacká
Production: Klára Pučerová / Architectura
Collaboration: National Technical Museum, National Gallery in Prague, North Bohemian Museum in Liberec, Klokner Institute, Sial, Dominik Bokr, Vladimír Bureš
Implementation: Signpek, Karel Stöhr, Jan Pokorný