The House at the Black Madonna once again presents Czech Cubism

The exhibition presents Czech Cubism as a style ideologically linking fine arts and applied arts, as well as architecture. It includes collections and solitary pieces of furniture, ceramic, glass, and metal accessories, wallpapers, poster art, and book graphics. Leading architects and designers such as Pavel Janák, Josef Gočár, Josef Chochol, Vlastislav Hofman, Otakar Novotný, and František Kysela are represented. Their works are complemented by a selection of Cubist paintings by Emil Filla, Bohumil Kubišta, Josef Čapek, Václav Špála, and sculptures by Otto Gutfreund.
In the Cubist house, the exhibition that reminded of the unique architectural style had existed before, operated by various institutions, most recently the National Gallery in Prague. However, the owner of the house is the State Fund for Culture, and all revenues from the house have so far been used to pay off debts the fund has. The state had stopped the Cubist house, just like the nearby House at Hybernů, at the beginning of the 90s due to the launch of a lottery. The lottery went bankrupt, and the fund's debts amount to hundreds of millions of crowns. However, according to the signed contract, the Museum of Decorative Arts will only pay the fund 20 percent of the entrance fee, but it will also cover the operation of its exhibition.
There is a café in the house, the interior of which is a replica of the original Cubist style, shops on the ground floor, and gallery spaces on the upper floors. The NG left the house in 2012, and since then the exhibition halls have been empty. The Museum of Decorative Arts, which already knew it would have to close due to the reconstruction of its building, was ready to open the exhibition as early as the autumn of 2012. However, it took the Ministry of Culture three years to prepare the lease agreement and make minor adjustments.
"I am very pleased that the long negotiations led to a goal and that today we can open the exhibition, albeit with a small delay. It is a unique opportunity to present Cubist objects from our collections collectively in an authentic environment," says UPM director Helena Koenigsmarková.
The permanent exhibition will be supplemented by temporary exhibitions, and UPM has also prepared a map called "Walk through Prague's Cubist Architecture," which is available in print or at www.czkubismus.cz. From January 2016, the exhibition will be expanded with tablets featuring a timeline, profiles of personalities of Czech Cubism, and examples of contemporary critiques and caricatures.


Supplemented by the editorial office of Archiweb:

Author of the exhibition concept and texts: Lucie Vlčková
Architectural solution: Jiří Javůrek, Sylvie Bednaříková, Jakub Žák
(SGL project, s. r. o.)
Graphic design: Štěpán Malovec