The Brno council will again discuss the sgrafito due to the protest

Brno - The Brno City Council will again discuss next week whether the façade of the House of Art will be adorned with the criticized sgrafito. The delay of the definitive decision was achieved by artist Michal Blažek through today's protest on the scaffolding of the reconstructed building. The Brno City Council unanimously decided on Tuesday that there would be no sgrafito on the House of Art. However, Deputy Mayor Daniel Rychnovský (KDU-ČSL) promised Blažek today that the council would revisit the matter next week. The sgrafito is disliked by part of the professional community as well as the management of the House of Art.
    In the morning, Blažek climbed the scaffolding and began working on the sgrafito despite the council's verdict. He argued with representatives of the House of Art, and police officers arrived at the scene. Rychnovský ultimately persuaded Blažek to suspend his protest. "It was a tense situation; I didn't want to take the risk of a scuffle or someone falling from the scaffolding," Rychnovský told ČTK.
    Blažek and architect Petr Hrůša, who is the author of the reconstruction project, claim that the council made its decision based on incomplete documentation submitted by the director of the House of Art, Rostislav Koryčánek. "He provided them with proposals that were outdated, not artistically developed. He didn't give them the final ones," Blažek told ČTK. He said he would comply with the new decision of the council, whatever it may be.
    Koryčánek rejects the assertion that he improperly influenced the council. He claims he provided them with what he had available. He disagrees with the sgrafito on the façade due to its theme and form. Sgrafito is an old technique, whereas the House of Art focuses on contemporary art.
    "I believe that if there is to be any such decorative element on the building, it should originate from various proposals in some competition," Koryčánek stated. He is also bothered by the reference to the medieval Christian movement Devotio moderna, which is part of the sgrafito. Sgrafito refers to a so-called scratched painting. It is a method of wall ornamentation and figurative decoration on the exterior of buildings. It is created by scratching through a wet upper white layer of plaster to the lower colored, usually black, layer.
    Blažek's protest had to be monitored by the City Police today. "There was a threat of, for example, falling from the scaffolding. Therefore, the officers climbed up to the man," said police spokeswoman Denisa Kapitančiková.
    The renovation of the originally Art Nouveau building in Malinovského Square began more than a year ago and is slowly nearing completion. It will cost approximately 60 million korunas in total.

> Failed Neorenaissance in Functionalist Brno [artalk.cz, 6.4.2009]