Hybrid Architectures: Rostislav Švácha

In the final installment of the lecture series "Movers of Architecture," organized by the Plzeň association "Pěstuj prostor," the probably most prominent Czech historian and theorist of architecture Rostislav Švácha from the Institute of Art History of the Czech Academy of Sciences will speak. In his lecture, which will take place on Wednesday, May 23, 2018 at 6 PM in the former Kraus family apartment (one of the so-called Loos interiors) in Plzeň, he will point out that new architecture should not damage historical sites but enrich them. The search for good examples of such enrichment in the Czech Republic has been undertaken for fifteen years by the "Klub Za starou Prahu" award. Professor Švácha will introduce the listeners to its results and explain the criteria by which the Club evaluates new constructions in a historical context.

The history of the "Klub Za starou Prahu" dates back to the end of the previous century. Among the Club's chairpersons have been many personalities from Czech architecture and art history – including architects Jan Koula and Bohumil Hübschmann, as well as art historians Zdeněk Wirth and Vojtěch Birnbaum. Since its founding, the Club has been dedicated to the protection of monuments in Prague. It particularly monitors cases where construction interventions in Prague severely threaten monuments or the city panorama, as well as situations where investors attempt to push through their plans that conflict with expert heritage assessments. In this activity, it is assisted by the high expertise of many of its members, led by Rostislav Švácha.

In addition to efforts to save valuable older and newer buildings (recently, for example, the already non-existent corner house on Wenceslas Square by Bohumír Kozák or the ensemble of Trangas immediately threatened by demolition), the Club also publicly engages in the annual award for new construction in a historical environment. The award was born out of dissatisfaction with new buildings in old towns and the desire to define the principles of good integration of new architecture into a historical context. In recent years, the award has been won by, among others, the works of the Brno studio Burian & Křivinka or the AP atelier of Josef Pleskot. The latest winner of the KZSP Award this year is the municipal office building and adjacent public spaces in Bílovice nad Svitavou, realized according to the project by Pavel Pekár (PP architects).

The long-time chairman of the KZSP jury is none other than Professor Švácha, among other things, the author of numerous books and studies in which he often reinterprets Czech architecture of the past and present, as well as numerous translations through which he has brought theoretical concepts from abroad into the domestic environment. Among the historians of architecture of his generation, Rostislav Švácha stands out not only for his expertise but also for his pedagogical activities, during which he has educated several generations of architecture historians (he heads the Department of Art History at the Faculty of Arts of Palacký University in Olomouc, lectures at the Prague AVU, and also engages with students at FF UK), as well as his active efforts to save Czech architectural heritage.

Admission to the event is 50 CZK. The cycle is prepared by the association "Pěstuj prostor" with the support of the city of Plzeň, the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic, and the Czech Architecture Foundation. It aims to support and develop the interest of the local professional and broader public in architecture and the built and landscape environment of the city.

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