VŠUP will not get rid of the historical building even after the completion of the second building

Prague - The Artistic Council of the Applied Arts University today decided that the historic building of the school remains "an integral part of its past, present, and future existence." Kamila Stehlíková from the school's external relations department told ČTK today. The school council responded to speculation that after the completion of the second school building, the historic object would remain unused and could become the subject of speculation by real estate companies.
    The Applied Arts University faced problems related to its management, especially last year. The president dismissed Rector Boris Jirků last June, and the academic senate of the school elected a new rector only at the beginning of November. The atmosphere at the school was very tense throughout Jirků's tenure at the head of the institution. Just at the time of the new rector's election, speculation began that some foreign real estate traders were interested in the building, who wanted to acquire other objects on Alšovo nábřeží and convert them into hotels.
    Since its establishment in 1885, the school has been located in a building on Alšovo nábřeží. It gradually expanded its fields of study and established additional studios, which today cover the entire area of visual culture. The building became insufficient in terms of space, and the school rented several locations around Prague, with a detached design studio based in Zlín.
    After years of effort, the project for a second building of the school in Prague Ďáblice began to take shape, where modern conditions for studio, workshop, and theoretical teaching should be created.
    Based on the results of the architectural competition, AP atelier is preparing the project documentation for the individual stages of construction. The proposed building will meet about 50 percent of the future program needs of the school.
    In Ďáblice, the remediation of the construction site area is already being completed, and the school is ready to announce a tender for the supplier of the first part of the construction as soon as budgetary support is secured, Stehlíková stated.
    The main building will remain a partial educational workplace, especially for those studios that do not require heavy workshop operations due to the heritage-protected building. At the same time, it will open its representative spaces to the public with exhibitions of current results of its work and history. It can also become a sought-after center thanks to its rich collection of a unique library, which will have appropriate study areas and storage facilities.
    The school emphasizes that it will not abandon its main building in the future. "The historic building, designed by the architect and its first rector František Schmoranz, will forever remain an unmistakable icon of the Applied Arts University in Prague," Stehlíková stated.