NPÚ wants to protect the Lesná housing estate and other monuments from the end of the 20th century

Prague - Experts from the National Heritage Institute (NPÚ) would like to protect the Brno housing estate Lesná as a cultural monument. They are therefore preparing a proposal for its declaration as a monument, which will be assessed by the Ministry of Culture. However, contrary to previous considerations, they do not plan to propose the Prague New Stage as a separate cultural monument. According to them, the most valuable elements of the building are protected by the area of the Prague Heritage Reserve. Heritage professionals and architects want to focus more on the architecture of the second half of the 20th century and its preservation and debate.
    In the case of the housing estate, a proposal is also being prepared for the declaration of artistic artifacts that complement the architecture of the housing estate. "The committee for the protection of cultural heritage from the second half of the 20th century did not reach a unanimous agreement on the declaration of the New Stage, and it was decided not to initiate the preparation of a proposal for its declaration as a cultural monument," said NPÚ spokeswoman Jana Tichá to ČTK. Since the building by architect Karel Prager is located within the city's heritage reserve, its urban solution and facade are, according to experts, sufficiently protected.
    The aforementioned committee at the NPÚ was established in the spring mainly due to the lack of public discussion about the value of architectural works predominantly from the 1960s to the 1980s. The list of immovable cultural monuments in the Czech Republic has over 40,000 items, but most of them comprise traditional buildings that people consider monuments. In addition to sacred buildings and noble residences, there are numerous cultural buildings or village settlements.
    Only in recent years has the state started to declare industrial buildings as monuments. "Industrial monuments today account for six to seven percent of all immovable monuments," says the director of NPÚ, Naděžda Goryczková. Modern architecture is in an even worse situation; monuments from the second half of the 20th century represent less than one percent of the entire list of immovable monuments. Monuments have been declared, for example, in Prague and Brno, but these buildings are minimally recognized in smaller cities.
    Only about two dozen monuments from the second half of the 20th century are listed on UNESCO's World Heritage List, with the most famous examples being the city of Brasília and the Sydney Opera House. Currently, there are 17 items on the list of monuments that the Czech Republic plans to nominate for entry on the UNESCO list, with only the Ještěd transmitter representing modern architecture.
    The state monument care system should be more refined by experts. Within the Research Center for Industrial Heritage of the Faculty of Architecture of the Czech Technical University, studies of two buildings, Ještěd and the Thermal Hotel, have been developed. Both represent iconic buildings that exceed the standard of contemporary production. While Ještěd has the status of a cultural monument, Thermal does not. "The problem with the architecture of the second half of the 20th century is that it must still serve its users today and be in operation. It cannot be frozen or turned into museums," says architect Petr Vorlík. According to him, the issue is also that the buildings look different today due to modifications than they did at the time of their creation. Furthermore, only the building of Ještěd is protected, not the interior, which has largely not survived.
    The NPÚ has proposed introducing the concept of cultural potential and its subsequent protection in the prepared monument law. The law also considers the return to the concept of regional monuments, which are not nationally significant, but important for the region. The director of NPÚ adds that not everything can be derived solely from institutional protection; cities and municipalities must also protect their cultural heritage. "It is also important to involve civil society in the given place, as was successfully done in the case of the railway station in Havířov," she states.
    The civic association Důl architektury seeks to save the railway station built in the Brussels style, which its owner, Czech Railways, wants to replace with a new building. A year ago, the outgoing Minister of Culture, Alena Hanáková, did not declare the building a monument, contrary to the recommendation of her expert committee. Now, the Czech Chamber of Architects has submitted a new proposal highlighting the architectural qualities of the building and the glass mosaic in the vestibule. It also points to the urban context, where the horizontal building of the station complements the vertical building of the nearby panel house. However, the CKA recommends protecting only the station itself designed by architect Josef Hrejsemnou.