Opening of the exhibition Contemporary Czech and Polish House

The subject of the competition Contemporary Czech House: Through the Eyes of Young Architects is the preparation of a design proposal for a family house for a family of four. The purpose is to find an architectural solution to contemporary requirements that would reflect the national specifics of historical and modern residential architecture. The competition is announced in close cooperation with Czech architecture faculties in Brno, Liberec, Ostrava, and Prague. The national jury includes Markéta Cajthamlová, Jakub Kynčl, Pavel Nasadil, and Alexandr Skalický.

All competition projects (from both the Czech and Polish competitions) will be presented at an exhibition in the atrium of the new building of the Faculty of Architecture of the Czech Technical University in Prague until April 28, 2012 (open Monday to Saturday from 8 AM to 8 PM). In the fall of 2012, the exhibition will also be presented at the headquarters of other universities. The winning works will also be introduced to the general public through the website www.greatvillas.org, where they will be displayed in the form of interactive 3D models.

The competition is being held as part of the international project Contemporary House: Through the Eyes of Young Architects, which involves architecture students from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia, with the aim of confronting and comparing the youngest architectural creations, reflecting current issues of individual housing and lifestyle. The outputs of the project should offer a glimpse into the future of family housing in the 21st century. The winners from each of the four countries will participate in an international workshop in Debrecen, Hungary, in May 2012, followed by a conference and an exhibition of villa architecture from the Visegrad countries in Brussels in 2013.

The project was supported by the European Culture program (2007 – 2013) and the International Visegrad Fund. It is held under the auspices of the Minister for Regional Development of the Czech Republic, Kamil Jankovský, the Mayor of the Capital City of Prague, Bohuslav Svoboda, and the Mayor of the Prague 6 District, Marie Kousalíková. Media partners include Czech Radio and the web portal for modern architecture, archiweb.cz.

The project is organizationally ensured by the artistic agency Foibos, which has been dealing with architectural topics for a long time. It has published a number of books documenting architectural heritage not only in its historical form but also as the most current contemporary work. The agency has organized approximately one hundred architectural exhibitions in the Czech and Slovak Republics, expert conferences, lectures, workshops, and programs specifically targeted at specific groups of recipients. In 2010, as a culmination of a broader project, exhibitions were prepared and publications were released including Famous Villas of Bohemia, Moravia, and Silesia and Famous Villas of Slovakia. This year, the agency launched the Via Villas project, supported within the Culture 2007-13 program, focusing on villa architecture in the Visegrad countries, particularly Poland, Hungary, and Slovenia.

Personnel provision for the project:

•    Dr. Oldřich Janota, conceptual ideator of the project, long-term specialization in the field of residential architecture (e.g., conceptual creator of projects Famous Villas, Famous Buildings, Kotěra Center for Architecture), extensive experience in organizing architectural competitions (Grand Prix of the Architects' Association).
•    Mgr. Kristýna Jirátová, assistant, director of the Kotěra Center for Architecture in Trmal's Villa, professional management of the year-round operation of the Kotěra Center – exhibitions, lectures, research, postgraduate study of Art History at FFUK.
•    Doc. Ing. arch. Ján Stempel, international chairman of the competition, conceptual ideator of the competition, personnel provision for the expert jury, faculty member of the Faculty of Architecture at ČVUT in Prague, extensive experience with architectural competitions (Grand Prix of the Architects' Association) and numerous awards in architectural competitions (e.g., 1st prize 1992 EXPO´92 for the exhibition pavilion Sevilla).

The project is held under the auspices of:
Minister for Regional Development of the Czech Republic, Ing. Kamil Jankovský
Mayor of the Capital City of Prague, Doc. MUDr. Bohuslav Svoboda, Csc.
Mayor of the Prague 6 District, Ing. Marie Kousalíková

Foibos Bohemia o.p.s.
Vilová 11, Prague 10, 100 00
T +420 274 772 362
F +420 274 772 386
http://www.slavnevily.cz/