In Zikmund's villa, guided tours for the public have started

From the guided walk through the architecture of the H+Z villas (April 2022). Source: Zlín Architectural Manual. Credit: Onomono Photography - Petr Willert

The Zikmund Villa Foundation started selling tickets for guided tours on October 27, 2022. Tickets can be purchased through the foundation's website. A surprise is also prepared for visitors. Some tours will be led by Miroslav Zikmund's stepdaughter, Jana Macalíková. The accessibility of this cultural monument was made possible thanks to the support of the EEA (European Economic Area) Funds.

Just under a year after the farewell to traveler Zikmund, the public can take a look into the places where he spent most of his life. The doors of his villa in Zlín opened to guests in October, who will have the opportunity to visit it usually once a month. During the tour day, four groups of six will walk through the house, typically at 9:30, 11:00, 13:00, and 14:30. "The capacity of the group is determined by the possibilities of the interior. Visitors will not only enter the spacious ground floor with a library and exhibits from travels but will also ascend to the more intimate upper floor - to the private spaces that were previously used only by Miroslav Zikmund and his closest ones," explained Magdaléna Hladká, director of the Zikmund Villa Foundation.

Guests will only glimpse into the legendary study and private bedroom. "We are respecting Miroslav Zikmund's habit of not allowing guests into his study. We honor this decision. We also want to preserve the genius loci of the place, which most intensely bears Mirek's imprint," stated Čestmír Vančura, chairman of the foundation and current owner of Zikmund's villa. In contrast, the extensive garden will be freely accessible to participants of the guided tour.

Tickets are already on sale at a uniform price of 400 CZK per person. The foundation will continuously update the dates on its website. According to Vančura, traveler Zikmund did not want to turn his house into a mass attraction, which is reflected in the frequency of the tours. Given the high interest so far, it is likely that some will have to wait a while for the experience, similar to what happens with the Tugendhat villa.

However, in Zlín, there is a bonus prepared for visitors. Some groups will be guided by the daughter of Miroslav Zikmund's life partner, Jana Macalíková. Guests will have the opportunity to ask her about interesting facts from the traveler's private life. "It will be an honor for me to guide through this villa, which I have known since childhood, and I also feel it as a pleasant duty towards Mirek and a small repayment for everything he has done for us," commented Macalíková on her collaboration in opening the villa. "We believe the public will appreciate this added value," added Vančura.

The iconic house, built in the 1930s by the Baťa company as an official apartment for the first governor of the Zlín district, Jan Janů, belonged for eleven years to the Oscar-winning director Klos and was the home of traveler Zikmund for almost 70 years. It is now opening to the public for the first time in the form of guided tours. Thanks to the care of its previous owners, it is preserved in above-average good condition. The villa's interior features furnishings from the 1950s when the building underwent adaptation under the guidance of architect Zdeněk Plesník. It also retains a comprehensive collection of furniture by designer Miroslav Navrátil and Zikmund's personal items. "Apart from the necessary security, we did not adapt the interior of the house for the tours. Everything is 100% authentic, original. Visitors will not see an artificial exhibition but rather the space as Miroslav Zikmund inhabited it. For this reason, you will easily get the feeling in the villa that the famous traveler has just stepped out for a moment and will return at any moment," concludes Hladká.

About Zikmund's Villa
The house was built in the functionalist style by the Baťa company in 1934-1935 as an official apartment for the first governor of the Zlín district, government councilor, JUDr. Josef Janů, who lived here in rental with his wife Marie until 1953. However, in 1942, the villa was purchased from the Baťa company by Oscar-winning director Elmar Klos, the son of Marie Janů from her first marriage. Klos thus helped ensure housing for his parents even after the government councilor's retirement. In 1953, the Janů family was expelled from Zlín due to the discomfort of the communist regime. Klos then sold the property with its extensive garden, almost 9,000 m2, to traveler Miroslav Zikmund, who, together with Jiří Hanzelka, was processing films from their first expedition in Zlín studios at that time. Zikmund had the villa rebuilt that same year according to the design of architect Zdeněk Plesník into its current form. The interior furnishings were provided by designer Miroslav Navrátil. Since 2000, the house, along with the garden, has been listed as a cultural monument. Miroslav Zikmund spent almost 70 years at Nivy. He only sold the villa in 2020 to Čestmír Vančura, a Zlín entrepreneur and patron. Vančura, in line with Miroslav Zikmund's wishes, established a foundation that currently takes care of the house. Thanks to the support of the EEA Funds, this unique space steeped in stories has opened to the public after nearly 90 years of private use.