Liberec photographer Jiroutek will present the magic of Ještěd

LIBEREC - Liberec photographer Jiří Jiroutek is preparing a unique exhibition that will first present to Prague residents and then to Londoners the charm of the Ještěd mountain hotel, awarded the title of Building of the Century and newly included among national cultural monuments. Jiroutek told ČTK today that the exhibition is a tribute not only to the fascinating structure but also to the human effort that accompanied its construction.
The traveling exhibition will be titled The Ještěd Phenomenon, and its first stop will be at the Jaroslav Frágner Gallery in Prague from March 31 to April 30. The exhibition is under the patronage of the Governor of the Liberec Region, Petr Skokan. The exhibition, which is so closely related to Liberec, will not begin its journey there because no one from the locals came up with the idea.
"The exhibition is a continuation of the Ještěd Phenomenon project that I started last year when I created a calendar about Ještěd at the request of the Liberec city hall," Jiroutek recalled. The black-and-white calendar, which aimed to highlight the uniqueness of Ještěd and that the building is deteriorating and needs a general renovation, was met with a great response. This was also sparked by the book of the same name.
However, visitors to the exhibition will not see just photographs. Jiroutek has also gathered other unique items related to the building. Particularly, a realistic model of Ještěd, loaned by the Vítkovice company, from the time when architect Karel Hubáček created his unique architectural design. Restored café furniture by architect Otakar Binara will also be exhibited, of which only a few pieces remain. Visitors will also see designs of glass sculptures by Professor Stanislav Libenský or the original dining service and drinking glassware loaned by glassmaker Karel Wunsch, who designed the set intended solely for Ještěd. Again, this is exceptional because the Ještěd set was stolen just a few weeks after the hotel and restaurant opened.
London has expressed interest in the exhibition, which is preparing an exhibition about architecture behind the Iron Curtain during the Cold War in 2008. "I am also planning further stops in Germany and Austria," Jiroutek added.
The Ještěd mountain hotel is a hyperboloid 93 meters high. It uniquely combines the functions of a transmitter, hotel, and restaurant. It has been open to the public since 1973. The author of the project, Hubáček, received the international Perret Prize for it in 1969.