Results of the NCAs grant selection process for the year 2012

This year's meeting of the grant committee was the first meeting following the change in the grant policy of the Czech Architecture Foundation (NČA), which consists of supporting galleries operated by the Foundation through direct contributions to their exhibition activities from funds that NČA is not obliged to distribute in an open selection procedure. Gallery owners can then also apply for a grant for a specific exhibition/event in a public procedure, but unlike in previous years, they are not directly dependent on its outcome. This adjustment also allowed the grant committee to genuinely evaluate the projects submitted by the gallery owners independently.

The board of NČA then decided at its December 2011 meeting that a sum of 700,000 CZK would be distributed in an open grant procedure.

By January 10, 2012, a total of 70 applications meeting the requirements of the announced procedure had been submitted to the grant procedure for 2012, with a financial volume of 4,748,585 CZK, which is almost seven times more than the amount to be distributed.

The NČA grant committee convened on January 18, 2012, consisting of Jaroslav Zima, Marek Chalupa, Ladislav Kuba, Pavel Nasadil, Aleš Burian, Michal Kuzemenský (independent members), and Radek Kolařík, Martin Peterka, Tomáš Zlámal, Tomáš Bezpalec, Jakub Fišer, Jakub Kynčl (members of the NČA management and advisory boards).

After a more detailed study of the submitted applications, the grant committee agreed in the subsequent discussion to prioritize projects that address a wider audience, as well as projects responding to current and new themes.

The International Day of Architecture, organized by the Kruh association, lectures and discussions about architecture in smaller towns, Resuscitation of the Place (Chapel in Liběchov), or the People's School of Urbanism are examples that the grant committee considers very beneficial activities that contribute to awakening greater public interest in the quality of the environment in which we live. In the case of film evenings featuring architecture, held in Brno, the grant committee would welcome the expansion of this activity to Prague and other cities in the future.

For the Czech Architecture Foundation, it is also important to facilitate connections with current events on the international architectural scene. Therefore, the grant committee decided to support an exhibition by one of the most significant contemporary European architects, Eduardo Souto de Moura, associated with his lecture, as well as a lecture series by Aaron Betsky across Czech cities.

The grant committee further decided to support the exhibitions Reflection of Architecture and Medium exhibition at GA Brno as projects exploring ways to exhibit architectural works in galleries in the age of new media and the Internet, posing the question of the relevance of the exhibition's message at a time when images of exhibited works are already publicly presented in advance in other ways.

From other exhibition activities, the joint exhibition of school works organized by student associations and the upcoming exhibition of professor Bočan's work were appreciated.

Given the amount to be distributed, it was not possible to support all interesting projects related to publishing activities. The grant committee fully supported the publication Architecture and Sports, as a demanding publishing activity in a previously uncharted field. Furthermore, primarily theoretical compilations and publications were supported, as there are still very few quality texts translated into the Czech language.

In total, among the selected 19 projects, the amount of 700,000 CZK was distributed as follows:

1 Announced Selection Procedure

1. Ještěd F in a Cage, Leaden Dušan, B. Fuchs' Award | 30,000 CZK
x-fatul association at FUA TUL, Liberec

2. Medium Exhibition | 40,000 CZK
4AM association/GA Brno

3. Reflection of Architecture| 40,000 CZK
4AM association/GA Brno

1. Eduardo Souto Moura: Competitions | 100,000 CZK
Architectura association/GJF, Prague

2. Jan Bočan | 30,000 CZK
Člověk a prostor association, Prague

3. Růžena Žertová | 20,000 CZK
Petra Gajdová, Petr Klíma, Olomouc

1. Architecture and Public Space | 30,000 CZK
Zlatý řez association, Prague

2. Architecture and Sports | 70,000 CZK
Prostor-Architektura, Interior, Design o.p.s., Prague

3. Monograph of Professor Adolf Benš | 30,000 CZK
Petr Keil, Prague

4. Resuscitation of the Place: Chapel in Liběchov | 20,000 CZK
Marek Přikryl, Prague

5. Lessons for Students in Architecture | 30,000 CZK
Mon Nox s.r.o., Dolní Kounice

6.Dita Dvořáková: Ladislav Žák | 20,000 CZK
Arbr vitae/Martin Souček, Prague

1. People's School of Urbanism - First Year| 20,000 CZK
Praguewatch association, Prague

2. Offcity Architects 2012 | 20,000 CZK
Terra Madoda association

3. Aaron Betsky in the Czech Republic | 20,000 CZK
Ladislav Zikmund, Hradec Králové

1. Film Evenings Featuring Architecture VI. | 20,000 CZK
Center for Architecture association, Brno

1. International Day of Architecture, 1st Year | 110,000 CZK
Kruh association, Prague

2. Ostrava Lectures and Events on Architecture| 20,000 CZK
Fiducia association, Ostrava

1 ERA21 Year 2012| 30,000 CZK
ERA média s.r.o., Brno

2. Operating Grants

1. Grant for the operation of GJF in Prague | 150,000 CZK
Architectura association, Prague

2. Grant for the operation of GA in Brno | 150,000 CZK
4AM association, Brno

3. Grant for Exhibition Activities

1. Grant for the exhibition program of GJF in Prague | 500,000 CZK
Architectura association, Prague

2. Grant for the exhibition program of GA in Brno | 300,000 CZK
4AM association, Brno


The grant committee recommended that the Czech Architecture Foundation adjust the conditions for presenting individual projects for the next procedures so that they are presented in a unified and thus more understandable manner.
The grant committee furthermore recommends that applicants for grants in the category of exhibitions in Prague and Brno utilize the exhibition capacities of both galleries operated by the foundation. The Czech Architecture Foundation is capable of supporting interesting projects not only through direct funding within the grant procedure but also by potentially providing space in its own galleries and facilitating collaboration with gallery owners (e.g., during the presentation of the next year's Mies van der Rohe Prize).