Peter Szalay: Restoring Modernity.

The Neologian Synagogue in Žilina is somewhat of a Slovak Villa Tugendhat, not only because both works were designed by the "fathers" of world modern architecture. Their widely publicized restoration process showed our society that it is necessary to restore modern architecture as well. However, the parallels between the two works diverge significantly in the actual practice of their restoration. The lecture will thus reflect on the positions of the practice of conservation and the transformation of memory and architecture, which, like "free" creation, open a discussion about understanding architecture, art, and contemporary society.

Peter Szalay (*1982), theorist and historian of architecture, graduated from the Department of Art History at the Faculty of Arts of Comenius University in Bratislava and completed doctoral studies at the Faculty of Architecture of the Slovak University of Technology. He works at the Department of Architecture, Institute of Construction and Architecture of the Slovak Academy of Sciences in Bratislava. In his research, he primarily focuses on the theory and history of modern architecture in the Central European region from both a heritage and social perspective. He is a co-author of several scientific publications, including Modern Bratislava (2014), Modern and/or Totalitarian Architecture in Slovakia (2013), and Atlas of Settlements in Bratislava (2012). He is a correspondent for the magazine A10 and a member of the editorial board of the magazine ERA 21. He is a member of the international organization for the research and protection of modern architecture DOCOMOMO International.

Academy of Fine Arts in Prague
U Akademie 4, aula – 3rd floor

Organized by The Scientific Research Center of AVU in collaboration with the Department of Theory and History of Art of AVU.
Technical support Digilab AVU, online stream Czech Television.