SOFFA 24 / CZECHOSLOVAKIA, English edition

SOFFA

design

food

people

travel

VOLUME | 24

life

SOFFA

design

food

people

travel

life

ISSUE THEME: CZECHOSLOVAKIA 2018 will mark the centenary of the founding of Czechoslovakia. In SOFFA 24 we honour the so-called First Republic and salute the beginnings of Czechoslovakia’s statehood. Join us to celebrate this momentous jubilee!

Contents

SOFFA ISSUE 24 IS DEDICATED TO

CZECHOSLOVAKIA The period of the first Czechoslovak Republic – beginning with the founding of Czechoslovakia on 28 October 1918 and ending with the signing of the Munich agreement in September 1938, which forced Czechoslovakia to cede its border regions to Nazi Germany – is for many Czechs an unattainable model shrouded in a veil of romance. Yet the young country had its issues, and things were far from ideal. As part of our celebration of the centenary, we seek to highlight that of which we should be proud, and to explore how the legacy of the First Republic has shaped the current generation. Two key symbols of the prosperous young nation were Tomáš Baťa and the city of Zlín, which we explore in our travel feature. In our architecture feast we discover Prague’s famous shopping galleries as well as interiors designed by Josef Gočár, Josip Plečnik and Adolf Loos. Our fashion photo story is staged in the beautiful Villa Winternitz and features the traditional Czech fashion labels Nehera and Tonak, among others. Prague’s Municipal House is where the birth of Czechoslovakia was announced, one of the reasons it is a must-see for any visitor to the magnificent city and for our readers. This issue will also take you to the newly revitalised glassworks Rückl and to four legendary First Republic cafés, which are all experiencing a renaissance. And since the first Czechoslovak Republic was really about people, our gallery presents famous personalities of the era. Interested in what Vlasta Burian used for light or what the motor racing legend Eliška Junková collected? Read on!

4

6 10 34 42 51 63 74 84 92 106 116 117 125 150 151

Welcome | Happy Anniversary!

Architecture | Loos, Mies van der Rohe and Gočár Utterly Czech | Step Slide Step Czech Brands | Party of Five Interior | Bathed in Light Design and Food | Slice of History Design | Eternally Avant-garde Architecture | Beacon of Statehood Fashion | Lunch at Villa Winternitz Gallery | First Republic Celebrities Editor’s Choice | Something for Everyone Sport | Sokol Then and Now Travel | Inventing Zlín Editor’s Choice | Czech These Out Creative People | Study in Rose

Welcome

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY! I have always loved black and white films, Adolf Loos interiors, Josef Lada illustrations and Prague’s enchanting shopping galleries. To me they are all symbolic of Czechoslovakia’s First Republic, whose centenary we are honouring with this issue.

The whole year I have been looking forward to our photo shoots in Villa Winternitz and in Baťa houses, savouring desserts from the 1920s at the famous café Myšák, and sitting in a Halabala armchair reading about famous personalities of the First Republic. All so we could present them to you, our readers. I hope we have been successful in capturing the unique spirit of the first two decades of our nation with the elegance and respect it deserves.

While 2018 will salute the centenary of independent Czechoslovakia, this year marks two important anniversaries of Josef Lada – undoubtedly one of Czechoslovakia’s most renowned artists. The exhibition Josef Lada’s Sevens [Sedmičky Josefa Lady], on display at the Dancing House Gallery until 1 April 2018, commemorates 130 years since the artist’s birth and 60 years since his death. Josef Lada’s illustrations are an inseparable part of the Czech Christmas tradition and a charming symbol of our cultural heritage. Visit the exhibition with your family and allow yourself to be enchanted by Lada’s poetry and humour.

Adéla Kudrnová | editor in chief

WIN ENTRY TO THE EXHIBITION JOSEF LADA’S SEVENS [SEDMIČKY JOSEFA LADY] Planning a visit to see the Josef Lada exhibition? Tell us at info@soffamag.com (subject: #Lada) which Lada illustration you like the most and why. The five most interesting answers win one ticket each to the Josef Lada’s Sevens exhibition. www.sedmickyjosefalady.cz

For complete contest rules visit www.soffamag.com.

illustration: Josef Lada archive

ORDER YOUR

SOFFA ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION SUBSCRIBE TO SOFFA FOR THE WHOLE YEAR AND HAVE YOUR SOFFA DELIVERED DIRECTLY TO YOUR HOME AND TO YOUR TABLET OR PHONE.

PRINT + DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTION POSTAGE INCLUDED 1,250 Kč within the Czech Republic | € 85 within Europe | € 105 outside Europe Subscribe online: SHOP.SOFFAMAG.COM, by email: soffa@send.cz, or call: +420 225 985 225

6 ISSUES FOR THE PRICE OF 5

+ HANDY PAARTY CLUTCH FROM PLAYBAG

ORDER YOUR SOFFA ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION BY 8. 2. 2018 AND RECEIVE THE HANDY PAARTY CLUTCH / WALLET FROM PLAYBAG VALUED AT 1,200 KČ AS A GIFT!

PAARTY CLUTCH / WALLET With the fun clutch / wallet from Playbag, there’s no need to go to parties that are boring – the party you want is with you all the time. Made from cow hide, the clutch is 20 cm by 13 cm and closes with a metal zip.

Offer valid if payment received between14. 12. 2017 and 8. 2. 2018 and while supplies last.

Once payment is credited you will receive the first available SOFFA issue and the Paarty clutch (in black or pink; colour to be selected by SOFFA). The Terms of Sale for annual subscriptions and information about SOFFA’s Privacy Policy can be found at shop.soffamag.com; the Terms and Conditions of Sale [Obchodní podmínky předplatného] of the subscription service provider can be found at send.cz.

Architecture

LOOS, MIES VAN DER ROHE AND GOČÁR MODERN ARCHITECTURE INFUSED THE YOUNG REPUBLIC WITH PHYSICAL AND VISUAL ENERGY, GIVING RISE TO MANY BUILDINGS THAT ATTEST TO MONUMENTAL TIMES IN OUR HISTORY. text: Hana Švolbová | photo: Michaela Karásek Čejková, Adéla Havelková, Lina Németh, André Reis, Petr Polák / Plzeň – Turismus archive and David Židlický

10

APPLIED ARTS PROSPER IN A PROSPEROUS SOCIETY, SO IT IS NO WONDER THAT AMBITIOUS CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS GOT UNDERWAY IN THE NEW CZECHOSLOVAKIA. BANKS, MUSEUMS, SPA PAVILIONS, SOKOL GYMNASIUMS AND OPULENT PRIVATE HOMES WERE POPPING UP LIKE MUSHROOMS, AND CITIES BEGAN TO CARRY OUT COMPREHENSIVE URBAN PLANNING. ARCHITECTS DREW INSPIRATION FROM A RANGE OF MODERNIST ARTISTIC STYLES, AND CUBIST AND FUNCTIONALIST BUILDINGS JOINED THE RANKS OF CZECHOSLOVAKIA’S EARLY ARCHITECTURAL TREASURES. LET US TAKE YOU ON AN ARCHITECTURAL TOUR THROUGH THE FIRST REPUBLIC.

LOOS’ PILSEN Our journey begins in western Czechia, for a time the base of the prominent Czech architect Adolf Loos, acclaimed for his work in Paris and Vienna and for the Villa Müller in Prague. Pilsen has a unique collection of eight apartment interiors completed by Loos in the 1930s for wealthy Jewish merchants. Each apartment has its own story, often tragic, linked not only to the time of the Second World War but also the communist era that followed. In designing the apartments Loos paid great attention to practical functionality: built-in cabinets full of thoughtful compartments, and interiors made of quality natural materials with unusual features intended to make everyday life easier. Perhaps the most beautiful of the interiors is the second floor apartment at no. 10 Bendova Street, built for the chemist Vilém Kraus. The most prized feature of the apartment is in the interconnected living and dining room, where mirrored walls placed opposite each other create an effect of perpetual enfilade, a never-ending suit of rooms. Loos’ interiors are on view during regular tours. | www.adolfloosplzen.cz

PRAGUE OF MANY FACES Palaces and Shopping Galleries Around Wenceslaus Square Wenceslaus Square and its vicinity has been the beating heart of Prague’s New Town since the Middle Ages. The wide boulevard that delineates the square is watched over by the statue of St. Wenceslaus, created by the sculptor Josef Václav Myslbek. The modern tone of the square is set by its Art Nouveau and modernist buildings with their distinctive shopping galleries. Among the most famous of these is the Koruna [Crown] Palace on the corner of Wenceslaus Square and Na Příkopě Street. The palace was built between 1911 and 1914 in late Art Nouveau style and culminates in an octagonal ►

11

glass dome in the shape of a crown. During the First Republic Koruna was the New Town’s social centre with a beauty salon, a steam bath, a cinema and beginning in 1931 a fast food automat. | www.koruna-palace.cz Perhaps the most famous Wenceslaus Square shopping gallery is located on Vodičkova Street in the Lucerna Palace. Built between 1907 and 1911 in Art Nouveau style, the palace construction included special modernist elements such as reinforced concrete and glass brick ceilings. Lucerna was the embodiment of a modern city centre interwoven with social, cultural and shopping facilities. Its creators, Vácslav Havel and Jan Čamský, built a truly distinctive building for its time: the palace included space for several large halls, offices, apartments and studios, and on the ground level a walkthrough gallery with shops and a cafeteria. The most acclaimed space within the palace is the Grand Hall, for a time the largest such hall in Prague. Lucerna is inextricably linked to the Czech cultural scene – it was a one-time base of the growing radio and film industries and had the first sound cinema in Prague. Lucerna was returned to the Havel family in a devastated state following the end of Communism; it was renovated and today it continues to serve its social and cultural role. The walk-through gallery features David Černý’s sculpture Horse. | www.lucerna.cz

Very close to Wenceslaus Square, on the corner of Jungmannovo Square and Národní Avenue, stands the Adria Palace. Commissioned by the Italian insurance company Riunione Adriatica di Sicurtà, the palace was completed in 1924 by the architect Josef Zasche in collaboration with Pavel Janák, who created the building’s colourful Rondocubist facade. The palace was also designed with a large walk-through shopping gallery, decorated with brass and Austrian pink-brown marble. The gallery’s rich sculptural ornamentation includes the work of Otto Gutfreund and Jan Štursa, who is the creator of the sculpture Adria, possibly the largest galvanoplastic sculpture in the world. The stylish café Adria, originally also a concert venue, offers a very pleasant atmosphere. | www.caffeadria.cz Gallery of Czech Design The monumental building of the Czech National Bank was built between 1935 and 1942 from the design of František Roith, and is a typical representation of the so-called ► THIS SPREAD FROM THE LEFT: The Garage Palace in Hradec Králové is a unique functionalist building. | The city spa [Městské lázně] in Hradec Králové had an artificial wave maker. | The Sokol building in Hradec Králové is also the home of the philharmonic orchestra. | Josef Gočár designed the functionalist villa in Lázně Bohdaneč for his sister.

13

LEFT AND ABOVE: Prague’s Trade Fair Palace is one of the largest functionalist buildings in Czechia.

The design of Hotel AXA came equipped with a sports theme and original chrome tube furniture.

Architecture

official functionalist architecture. From the beginning the Czech National Bank could be reached from Senovážné Square via a walk-through gallery running alongside the building, and the stylistically simple gallery has recently become the home of Czech design. Inspired by similar projects in Paris, Berlin and Brussels, the Czech Design gallery serves as an exhibition space as well as a place where designers and the public can meet. | www.pasazdesignu.cz Legiobanka and National Rondocubism The most typical representation of the Czech Rondocubist style is the Legiobanka building on Na Poříčí Street, built between 1921 and 1939 from the design of Josef Gočár. Rondocubism – a typically Czech architectural style – softened Cubism’s sharp edges with arcs harking back to Slavic traditions. The building was decorated with sculptural work from Jan Štursa and Otto Gutfreund. Today Theatre Archa is located in the basement. | www.palacarcha.cz Hotel AXA Na Poříčí street offers one more architectural treasure: the functionalist Hotel AXA built between 1930 and 1932. The building was designed and built by its owner, the architect Václav Pilc, whose athletic wife Běla Friedländerová – a top skier, swimmer and diver – inspired the sports-oriented hotel. The hotel included a swimming pool and two gymnasiums, where Běla offered sports training primarily for women. AXA was furnished with chrome tube furniture made by the company Slezákovy závody, and the original furniture was refurbished during the hotel’s renovation with the help of Kovonax. Today the hotel includes a public swimming pool and a fitness centre. | www.axa-hotel.cz Prague Giants Three monumental buildings complete our tour through First Republic Prague. The first is the Trade Fair Palace, one of the first and largest functionalist buildings, completed in 1928. The palace originally hosted trade fairs, later housed international export companies, and today the building serves as a centre of modern art, where the National Gallery exhibits its international art collections from the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries. | www.ngprague.cz One of the most notable sacral structures, not only in Prague but in all of Czechia, is the Church of the Most Sacred Heart of Our Lord in the Jiřího z Poděbrad Square. ► RIGHT: Brno’s Villa Tugendhat is the principle functionalist building in the Czech Republic.

16

THIS SPREAD: The Church of the Most Sacred Heart of Our Lord is the work of the Slovene architect Jože Plečnik.

The building carries royal as well as biblical symbolism.

LEFT AND ABOVE: The Museum of Eastern Bohemia was the first modernist building in Hradec KrĂĄlovĂŠ.

The interior of the apartment located at no. 10 Bendova Street in Pilsen is the best preserved modernist interior designed by the world-famous architect Adolf Loos.

Architecture

The work of the Slovene architect Jože Plečnik is a truly distinctive structure inspired

by Noah’s Arc and royal iconography – the decoration on the facade is reminiscent of an ermine coronation cloak. The face of the church clock is 7.5 metres in diameter and is the largest in Czechia. | www.srdcepane.cz Our tour through Prague ends at the National Monument in Vítkov, a dominant feature of the Prague panorama. Designed by Jan Zázvorka in the spirit of functionalism, the monument honours Czechoslovak legionnaires and Czechoslovak resistance in the First World War. The national liberation memorial was created between 1929 and 1933, and the imposing equestrian figure of Jan Žižka, designed by Bohumil Kafka, was completed in 1950. During the Second World War the monument served as a storage facility for the German Army, and after 1948 it was used for communist propaganda. Indeed, following the death of President Klement Gottwald, the monument also became his mausoleum. Today the monument belongs to the National Museum and its halls feature the exhibition Crossroads of Czech and Czechoslovak Statehood. | www.nm.cz

HRADEC KRÁLOVÉ – CZECHIA’S SHOWCASE The eastern metropolis is known as an architecture textbook under the open skies, presenting a full range of architectural styles beginning with the Gothic period and ending today. In addition, the city’s urban development from the interwar era has given the city the proud moniker ‘Czechia’s Showcase’. The development of the city is closely linked to the Mayor František Ulrich (in office from 1895 to 1929), who aspired to build a modern metropolis. The city information centre offers guided tours highlighting some of the key buildings designed by Kotěra, Gočár and other important architects. The tours begin at the Museum of Eastern Bohemia, designed

by Jan Kotěra as the first modernist building in Hradec Králové. Kotěra also built the nearby Městský dům [City House], which today houses the information centre. Smetanovo Embankment is the work of Josef Gočár and on it is the singular sokolovna built by the architect Milan Babuška, which includes a gymnasium, an athletics stadium, a restaurant and a concert hall. Oldřich Liska designed the town spa – unusual in its era – which included a swimming pool with an artificial wave maker. ► RIGHT: Gočár Pavilion in Lázně Bohdaneč is a perfect example of Cubist architecture.

22

ABOVE AND RIGHT: The walk-through gallery of the functionalist building housing the Czech National Bank is today the home of Czech design.

The late Art Nouveau Koruna [Crown] Palace in Wenceslaus Square had the first fast food automat.

ABOVE AND RIGHT: The late Art Nouveau Lucerna Palace was the centre of social and cultural life during the First Republic.

Lucerna was the first building in Prague with a walk-through gallery. Today it features David Černý’s upside down Horse.

LEFT AND ABOVE: Palác Adria was initially the home of an insurance company. Today it is the home stage of the theatre Divadlo Bez zábradlí.

Josef Gočár designed the Legiobanka building in the Czech Rondocubist style.

Architecture

Notable architecture of Hradec Králové includes not only civic and cultural buildings, but also places like the Garage Palace from Josef Fňouk. This ‘palace’ from 1932 was an automobile heaven: it contained garage spaces for several hundred automobiles, an auto repair service, a carwash and one of the most modern petrol stations in the country at the time. Modernism also characterises the bridging of the river Labe, the Business Academy building, residential and shopping buildings, and the memorial to Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk. A singular example of constructivist architecture is the building housing the regional administration of the National Railway Directorate, also designed by Josef Gočár. | www.hradeckralove.org

GOČÁR’S BOHDANEČ The peat-rich Bohdaneč Spa has become inextricably linked with the name of the famous architect Josef Gočár, who grew up in the town. There Gočár built some of his first independent projects, as well as the water reservoir and the riders’ barracks.

His most important local structure, named after him, is the Cubist spa pavilion built in 1913. Gočár also left a functionalist imprint on the town in the form of a 1930 villa designed for his sister Anna and her family. | lazne.bohdanec.cz

VILLA TUGENDHAT – BRNO’S JEWEL The German architect Ludwig Miese van der Rohe is considered to be one of the fathers of modern architecture. He left his mark in Czechia, home to one of his most famous buildings. Built in 1930, Villa Tugendhat is a pioneering work of functionalism, groundbreaking on several levels. The structure is carried by a steel frame and iron supports, which creates an uninterrupted interior. In addition, thanks to two large window panes that can be suspended, the interior can easily open to the outside gardens. The technical facilities were very innovative for their time, and the architectural design included elegant furniture. The villa located in Brno’s Černá Pole neighbourhood has been on the UNESCO list of World Cultural Heritage sites since 2001. | www.tugendhat.eu ■

RIGHT: The functionalist National Monument in Vítkov with the statue of Jan Žižka on horseback, the third largest equestrian statue in the world.

30

100 years of the Czech Republic story Discover places that have become a part of modern history.

Let us take you to the times of the unprecedented boom of Czech cultural and public life. To the times of grace and elegance, bold architecture, distinctive design and visionary brands.

www.czechtourism.com

Vila Tugendhat Brno

THE ALL-NEW ŠKODA KAROQ

SEE THINGS ANOTHER WAY There’s always another way to see things. For example, in the all-new ŠKODA KAROQ, when you roll back the panoramic sunroof, you open more than a view.

Take a test drive at your nearest ŠKODA partner and find another way to connect with the world – using Gesture Control, ŠKODA Connect and the My ŠKODA App. www.skoda-auto.com

Combined fuel consumption and CO2 emissions for the KAROQ model (valid in the Czech Republic): 4.4–5.5 l/100 km, 117–137 g/km

Utterly Czech

STEP SLIDE STEP UNBRIDLED YOUTH UNSETTLED BY A CHOKING TIE OR A PINCHING WAISTLINE, TRYING HARD TO CIRCLE THE DANCE FLOOR WITHOUT STEPPING ON EACH OTHER’S TOES. WELCOME TO THE UTTERLY CZECH DANCE SCHOOL. partner for the article: Fujifilm | text: Helena Stiessová | photo: Vojta Hurych / Fujifilm X-photographer

34

Utterly Czech

36

Utterly Czech

IT IS LIKE AN OUT OF BODY EXPERIENCE. AWKWARDLY SIXTEEN, STANDING IN FORMAL DRESS IN FRONT OF SOMEONE WITH WHOM YOU ARE ABOUT TO EMBRACE. JUST A LITTLE EMBARRASSING? THE PARQUET FLOOR IS DANGEROUSLY SLIPPERY UNDERFOOT, A SICKLY SWEET CLOUD OF COLOGNE AND SWEAT RISES TOWARDS THE CEILING. THIS IS HOW BALLROOM DANCING FOR CZECH TEENAGERS BEGINS, A BEAUTIFUL YET DREADED ANACHRONISM THAT HAS REMAINED POPULAR SINCE THE BIRTH OF POLKA. LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, BOYS AND GIRLS, FIND YOUR PARTNER ... WE BEGIN WITH A MAZURKA!

When the dance master announces it’s time to choose a partner, the young dancers fidget, look down to the floor and contemplate a dash to the opposite side of the ballroom, where others are doing the same. There is little time to be choosy, for those who waver are left behind, bitterly disappointed. Ballroom dancing is based on the principle of pairing, and the brutal truth of dance lessons means that someone will always be left out. There is nothing worse than being the wallflower in a room full of dancers. Once the dreaded pairing is sorted out, the programme can begin, and in addition to the mazurka it usually includes the waltz, tango, jive, cha-cha and the king of all ballroom dances, the Viennese waltz. On dark winter evenings under the watchful eye of the dance master, young dancers slowly work on unlocking the mystery of graceful moves, some more successfully than others. Everyone sweats profusely, especially under the critical gaze of their grinning mothers, who have come to enjoy the moment. They too have lived the embarrassment. As have their fathers and those before them, all the way back to the time when dance and its associated etiquette set the tone among the better to do. In the end, the hard effort culminates with the final evening dance, when girls dress in white to blend perfectly with the boys’ white gloves.

Many a quivering teenager resists and wonders, ‘what it’s all for’? But life sometimes calls for your attendance at a formal dance, or a wedding, and then the hard-earned steps become worthwhile. Or at the least provide humorous fodder as you watch your own children move across the dance floor as clumsily as you once did. On freshly polished parquet and under hot radiant lights, dance masters and mistresses across Czechia eagerly await new blood.

SOFFA photographed this story at the National House on Vinohrady, where a ballroom dance lesson was in progress in the Mayakovsky Hall. The atmosphere evoked some self-deprecating nostalgia in our photographer: I remember once during the ladies’ choice I was approached by the tallest girl. She told me straight out: ‘You’re the only one here taller than me. Dancing with you may be like moving a cupboard, but it’s better than dancing with someone a head shorter!’ ■

37

Utterly Czech

39

X-PHOTOGRAPHER [eks fəˈtɒɡrəfə]

A rare breed of photographer who works with Fujifilm X series cameras. An X-photographer is not limited to a specific theme or form of photo finishing; wins prestigious awards in competitions like World Press Photo, Sony World Photography, International Photography of the Year and Czech Press Photo; and is often published in the world’s most renowned publications including Time, The New York Times and The Guardian. A world-class professional, an X-photographer tests Fujifilm’s latest cameras and helps in their development.

Approximately 500 X-photographers work in 60 different countries across the globe.

Jakub Cejpek | CZE

Experience the world of X-photographers.

27 photographers from 15 countries, 9 common themes, 6 workshops, 11 public talks, 38 days full of photography.

The world’s X-Photographers are coming to Prague!

8. 12. 2017 – 14. 1. 2018 Czech Photo Centre Seydlerova 4, Praha 5 – Stodůlky

Jiří Šebek | CZE

Tomasz Lazar | POL

Samuel Zeller | CHE

Petr KozlĂ­k | CZE

Czech Brands

PARTY OF FIVE WE ARE PROUD TO PRESENT FIVE CZECH BRANDS THAT FEATURE TOGETHER AT THE SHOPPING GALLERY OF CZECH DESIGN IN PRAGUE. WHETHER NEW OR WELL-ESTABLISHED, ALL FIVE BRANDS HAVE A GREAT RESPECT FOR TRADITION AND A PASSION FOR DESIGN. partners for the article: TON, Playbag, TONAK, Kazeto and WOOLIFE text: Adéla Kudrnová and Tereza Škoulová | photo: company archives

42

TON | AFFINITY WITH WOOD WOOD IS A BEAUTIFUL MATERIAL AND MICHAEL THONET KNEW HOW TO WORK IT. IN 1861 HE FOUNDED A FACTORY IN BYSTŘICE POD HOSTÝNEM WHERE WOOD WAS BENT INTO NEW AND INGENIOUS FORMS. BY THE SECOND WORLD WAR THE THONET BRAND HAD PRODUCED MILLIONS OF CHAIRS, ARMCHAIRS AND OTHER FURNITURE THAT HAS FOREVER CHANGED THE DECOR OF INTERIORS. THE ICONIC CHAIR NO. 14 HAS TAKEN A SEAT IN CAFÉS AROUND THE WORLD AND IS STILL MANUFACTURED TO THIS DAY. IN THE SAME FACTORY AS IN THE PAST, UNDER THE SAME BRAND THAT HONOURS TRADITION AND QUALITY CRAFTSMANSHIP, A BRAND THAT DOES NOT REST ON ITS LAURELS BUT CONTINUES TO INNOVATE. WE SPOKE ABOUT TON WITH THE COMPANY’S MARKETING DIRECTOR JAN JUZA.

What TON chair do you like the most?

From the classics I like chair no. 30 and no. 811 with a cane seat or backrest. I like several of our new chairs, and my favourite is the Merano armchair, not only thanks to its aesthetic qualities, but also because it’s becoming an icon of modern TON. Merano has brought something new and fresh into the world of seating furniture, and since its arrival it has inspired many designers and other manufacturers. It’s not only beautiful, but also comfortable and well made, and it suits many different interiors, just as the classic pieces I mentioned earlier. I quite like eclectic interiors.

There are several companies making bent wood furniture in Czechia. What makes TON distinctive? It depends on how far back we want to go. Today it is our vision. About ten years ago during the economic crisis many furniture manufacturers were unable to respond to the sudden drop in demand. At the time TON made some significant changes to the product portfolio and started new marketing and business activities. That also meant substantial investments in production.

Today we can humbly say that it was the right direction to take, but it need not have been successful. Competition is huge on the global stage and it doesn’t rest.

So it perfectly represents the spirit of the brand? Exactly. I think that all the products I mentioned could be described as ‘conservatively fresh’, which may be an oxymoron, but I think it fits. All of them are made of wood through a craft that has been perfected over generations for almost 160 years.

What TON chair is most widely used? Demand changes with time, but the most successful chair in terms of sales has been café chair no. 14. Since 1859, when it was introduced, we have sold over 80 million pieces. The chair has also become a historical icon. In the sea of highly ornamental chairs that were popular ►

43

THIS SPREAD: Chair 002, design by Jaroslav Juřica, and Alba armchair, design by Alex Gufler, both from www.ton.eu

Czech Brands

our customer. On the other hand many people who aren’t yacht owners value our furniture and are willing to invest in it, either because they have past experience with TON, or – precisely because – they believe in our quality.

at the time, it was one of the first chairs that was light – not only visually. It could be stacked easily, which made it suitable for worldwide distribution, and so the chair found a home in different parts of the world. Its success was also underscored by the fact that it was one of the first chairs made as a series.

The Merano collection is definitely the favourite among our contemporary chairs: the Merano armchair is the first TON product to be awarded the prestigious Red Dot. Are you updating other models? We don’t update our archive very much. Chairs that have been made for almost 160 years are still being made for a reason. In addition to satisfying aesthetics, however, our chairs must respond to the growing demand for quality.

They must also make economic sense: we have to keep our manufacturing and sales prices reasonable.

One thing is how a chair looks, another is how comfortable it feels. How do you test design? The first thing we assess about a product is the aesthetic – whether it fits the portfolio. Right from the start we also deal with the question of whether the design is practical from a manufacturing standpoint and whether we can make it for a reasonable price. In the last phase of development we test every new product for structural quality: we simulate seating use and different environments and situations, in which the chair would be used. People don’t just sit on chairs – they rock on them or stand on them when watering plants and so on.

What is a reasonable sales price? Take for example mobile phones; today almost everyone buys a phone for several thousand crowns that will last only two to three years.

Our chairs will last a lifetime and will become an heirloom. That’s one of the reasons why we have customers from a variety of income brackets. Our products are more expensive than those from furniture chains, but we don’t just sell an aesthetic – we sell quality and value. More than twenty pairs of hands work on every TON chair. We make our products in Czechia and we make them by hand.

You work with many renowned designers.

How do you choose with whom to work?

If they don’t approach us with a product we need, we look at different designers’ styles and at their track record – for example, how many chairs they have made. After all, they say that designing a chair is one of the most difficult tasks for a designer.

But we also want someone with whom we will get on well. The worst collaboration is when people are on different wavelengths.

That’s when problems arise, and even a good product can suffer.

Who are your customers? We are a brand for everyone who values honest, quality work. You could be a billionaire, but if you like plastic furniture – nothing against plastic, there are quality products in plastic – you probably won’t be

Do you have any TON chairs at home?

I have one no. 14, two Era chairs designed by René Šulc and the Delta coffee table designed

by Kai Stania. At the moment I’m also eyeing the Split lounge armchair by Arik Levy. ■

46

PLAYBAG | FOREVER PLAYFUL The brand intent on providing people with fun backpacks, bags, wallets and belts that excel in craftsmanship and timeless design was established in 2008 by Aleš Loch.

Playbag’s new Radiance collection is very bright and cheery. The collection includes backpacks and handbags made from waterproof, semi-transparent fabric that appears to radiate from the inside. You don’t see them – you feel them!

Spirit backpack from the Radiance collection: www.playbag.cz

TONAK ON YOUR HEAD Originating in 1799, TONAK – derived from TOvárna NA Klobouky [Hat Factory] – is today one of the largest and best known makers of headwear. TONAK’s hats, berets, caps and other products have been made in their Nový Jičín and Strakonice factories for more than 200 years, and emerge in various shapes, materials and colours. Felt hats are among their most popular products, many of them handmade.

Fedora Laka Solei felt hat: www.tonak.cz

K

T KAZETO CARDBOARD MAGIC During the First Republic ladies stored their hats in Kazeto hatboxes and gentlemen carried Kazeto suitcases made with metal rivets. Established in 1925 by Karel Zejda, the Kazeto company continues to honour traditional manufacturing processes.

A cardboard case was a trusted treasure keeper for all Czechoslovak children and time has not changed a thing!

Hatbox with a leather strap: www.kazeto.cz

WOOLIFE | WARM COMFORT WOOLIFE was founded in 1990 by Vlasta Veselíková and builds on the long Czech and Slovak tradition of manufacturing clothing and footwear. The brand’s synonym is fine merino wool, which the Veselík family loves in all its forms. WOOLIFE uses the soft and breathable merino wool to make sweaters, pullovers, scarves, thermal underwear and bed linen, providing unparalleled warmth and comfort.

Vanilla Ice women’s polo neck sweater from extra fine merino wool: www.woolife.cz

So Clicquot, so responsible.

Interior

BATHED IN LIGHT

WHEN LOOKING FOR A FIRST REPUBLIC INTERIOR TO FEATURE IN THIS ISSUE, WE WERE HONOURED TO BE WELCOMED AT THE RESIDENCE OF THE PORTUGUESE AMBASSADOR MANUELA FRANCO. PLEASE COME IN. text: Patrik Florián | photo: Lina Németh

51

Interior

PRAGUE’S BUBENEČ NEIGHBOURHOOD IS KNOWN FOR ITS VILLAS. FACADES OF THE STATELY HOMES REVEAL THE WORK OF FAMOUS ARCHITECTS AND THEIR INTERIORS MELD FIRST-CLASS ART COLLECTIONS WITH FASCINATING STORIES. A GLANCE AT THE ORNAMENTAL WALLS AND BALCONIES OVERHANGING GRACIOUS GARDENS BECKONS FOR A PEEK INSIDE. SOFFA HAD THE HONOUR OF VISITING ONE SUCH HOME. IN ADDITION TO ITS DISTINCTIVE INTERIOR, THE MODERNIST VILLA ENJOYS AN INTERESTING HISTORY AND AN INTRIGUING TENANT.

Can you guess what pickles, Canada and the building known by her owners as Villa Nova have in common? In 1931 Vladimír J. Fejtek and his father-in-law Josef Novotný began to produce canned fruit and vegetables in Prague’s Holešovice neighbourhood.

One of their most popular products was the Nova brand of pickles. In 1944 Fejtek bought the modernist villa in Bubeneč, but the family lost it four years later as a result of political changes and emigrated to Canada, where they settled in Nova Scotia.

There Fejtek worked as the general manager of Canada Foods, and the company’s most popular product became Czech pickles Nova. During the communist period the villa housed the embassies of Brazil, Vietnam and Indonesia, and unfortunately sustained a lot of damage. Only in 2001 was the building rightfully returned to the children of Vladimír Fejtek – Ian, Beatrice and Vladimír – who immediately set about to renovate the villa and its garden. The siblings equipped the villa with modern amenities while honouring period details, and returned it to its original Art Deco glory. The Embassy of the Portuguese Republic became its first post-renovation tenant.

The current Portuguese Ambassador to the Czech Republic, Maria Manuela Ferreira Macedo Franco, has been residing at the villa since 2015. The ambassador is very fond of Czech art and the walls of her grand residence are decorated with Dalibor Chatrný’s graphic work and Markéta Othová’s photographs. The interior skilfully combines elements of Czech modernism and Art Deco with traditional Portuguese craft, such as the hand-woven arraiolos rug and the porcelain service from Rafael Bordalo Pinheiro, which patiently awaits the next reception. The villa hosts a number of events, including wine tastings, business dinners and evenings with artists, and its doors are always open. ■

LEFT: The property includes a small garden with a terrace and a gazebo. The large bay windows invite plentiful light into the oval dining room on the ground level.

53

LEFT: The living room is defined by wood panelling and beige tones and is complemented with glass built-in cabinets. Additional decorative elements include stained glass windows and bas-relief figures along the tops of the walls.

RIGHT: The Czech visual and conceptual artist Dalibor ChatrnĂ˝ is favoured by the ambassador. His collage of a girl hangs by the library.

LEFT: It may appear that Manuela Franco is a fervent lamp collector, but to her it is all about her love of light. The ambassador’s favourite piece is a tall ethno-style lamp she discovered on her visit to Art House Hejtmånek.

LEFT: Original pieces crafted in Czechoslovakia interact playfully with typical Portuguese accessories, such as the hand-woven arraiolos rug, the porcelain boar head and the vegetable serving set from the artist Rafael Bordalo Pinheiro.

NEXT PAGE: In the entrance hall visitors are greeted by the elegant combination of a parquet floor, green and white marble, wood panelling and gold-plated heating vents. The hall features a large-format photograph of a glass still life from the photographer MarkĂŠta OthovĂĄ.

SLOW LIVING CALENDARS ORIGINAL WALL CALENDARS DESIGNED BY SOFFA

BE INSPIRED BY OUR TIPS FOR SLOWING DOWN AND ENJOYING LIFE. MAKE 2018 YOUR YEAR TO EMBRACE EVERY MOMENT, BREATHE DEEPLY AND FEEL CONTENTED. Size and paper: A1 format, 170 gsm high quality matt paper Available at shop.soffamag.com

Design and Food

SLICE OF HISTORY CZECH HISTORY WAS WRITTEN IN CAFÉS, INCLUDING THOSE THAT WERE POPULAR DURING THE FIRST REPUBLIC. WHETHER THEIR ORIGINAL INTERIORS HAVE BEEN RETAINED OR MODERNISED, THE GENIUS LOCI OF THESE HISTORIC PLACES EXUDES UNMISTAKABLE ELEGANCE AND STYLE. partner for the article: Instax.cz | text: Tereza Škoulová | styling and photo: Adéla Kudrnová and André Reis

63

Design and Food

CUBIST PEARL THE CUBIST HOUSE OF THE BLACK MADONNA IS HOME TO THE ONLY CUBIST CAFÉ IN THE WORLD. BUILT IN 1912, THE HOUSE ADORNS A STREET CORNER IN THE HEART OF PRAGUE’S OLD TOWN. CUBISM IN ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN IS A DISTINCTIVE CZECH PHENOMENON, AND THE GRAND CAFÉ ORIENT IS A PEARL OF THE CUBIST AESTHETIC.

The House of the Black Madonna was the first Cubist building in Prague. Commissioned by the merchant Josef Herbst for his department store, the house was designed by the then 31-yearold architect Josef Gočár. To ensure that it was in harmony with its historical surroundings, the architect added more Cubist features to his original modernist design, including a Cubist entrance and balcony railing. The entire building is distinctive for its uniform concept: from the floor plan to the facade and the unique interior of the Grand Café Orient, including the dark oak bar, the chandeliers, the light fixtures and the banister rail on the staircase.

The original café opened in 1912 but closed in the 1920s, and the interiors were gradually demolished to make way for an office space. Seventy years later the building was completely renovated and the architect Karel Prager even added part of a glass roof that was included in Gočár’s original plan but not in the 1912 building. The renovation was remarkable, in part because this pearl of Czech Cubism was rebuilt on the basis of nothing more than a few period black and white photographs.

Reopened in 2005, the café is located on the first floor of the House of the Black Madonna, and during summer months the balcony offers views of the busy street below. Over a hot coffee you can savour the essence of the café’s characteristic style, including its typical Cubist-shaped dessert. Gočár’s bust oversees the present day interior where customers are attended to by waitstaff dressed in charming striped uniforms.

The café menu is generous: breakfast is served until lunchtime and there is a lot on offer. Vienna sausages hark back to the days of the empire and today’s healthy eating trend is satisfied with a wide range of salads, sandwiches and crepes. Also on offer is the local apple pastry delicacy.

From Wednesday to Saturday, live piano music of the 1920s and 1930s helps create period atmosphere during the early evenings. In addition, the café hosts regular talks by the architect Zdeněk Lukeš.

For more information visit www.grandcafeorient.cz ►

65

Design and Food

CAFÉ AS A WOMAN ALTHOUGH PRAGUE’S RENOWNED CAFÉ LOUVRE IS NAMED AFTER THE FAMOUS FRENCH ART GALLERY, THE PRESENT DAY INTERIOR WAS INSPIRED BY VIENNA. THE CURRENT OWNER RENOVATED THE CAFÉ IN THE EARLY 1990s IN THE SPIRIT OF VIENNESE COFFEE HOUSES, AND IN THE PROCESS SATISFIED THE DESIRES OF HIS CUSTOMERS.

The original café Louvre was established in 1902 and counted many famous personalities among its patrons: in addition to Karel Čapek, Franz Kafka and Albert Einstein, the café was frequented by Franz Brentano and his German philosophy society, and women of higher social class met there to debate women’s emancipation. ‘A café is essentially a woman,’ said the present owner Sylvio Spohr in one interview.

During its golden era, which lasted until the Communist takeover in 1948, the café hosted meetings of the artist collective Sursum, whose members included the writer and painter Josef Váchal and the visual artist Jan Zrzavý. It also became the founding seat of the Czechoslovak PEN Club in 1925. After its closure the Communists devastated the café – it is said that during the rampage the furnishings literally flew out the windows.

The café was renovated in 1992 and the present look was refined during its first three years of operation. In the early 1990s it was the only café in Prague serving a good breakfast, and the opulent culinary experience of the morning remains to this day. The strong beef broth is sure to put vigour in your step, the eggs prepared in all manner of ways will give you energy, and their famous pancakes with raspberries and cream will please your taste buds.

In addition to breakfast, café Louvre serves up a nice lunch and dinner: the menu includes the Czech classic roast beef on cream with cranberry sauce, savoury French pastries and beef steak tartar with mascarpone. And because Louvre wants to be everyone’s café, prices for their delicacies are friendly. Louvre also remains a ‘true coffee house’ – diners can enjoy a wide selection of daily press as well as games including chess, billiards, dice and table hockey. Recently the café has also started a tradition of ‘Tea at Five’, serving up a range of quality black teas, sandwiches and pastries every day between 4 and 6 pm.

For more information visit www.cafelouvre.cz ►

66

Design and Food

CULTURAL ICON CAFÉ SLAVIA IS UNDOUBTEDLY THE MOST FAMOUS OF PRAGUE’S CAFÉS, AND THROUGHOUT THE TWENTIETH CENTURY IT BECAME A SYMBOL OF PRAGUE’S CULTURAL LIFE. ITS UNRIVALLED LOCATION ON SMETANOVO NÁBŘEŽÍ, DIRECTLY ACROSS FROM THE NATIONAL THEATRE, MAKES IT THE CAFÉ WITH THE MOST BEAUTIFUL VIEW OF THE CASTLE AND THE RIVER, AND THE PLACE WHERE PRAGUE’S CULTURAL SCENE MEETS.

The café on the ground level of Lažanský Palace, the building in which the composer Bedřich Smetana lived in the 1860s, was founded by Václav Zoufalý in 1884. Originally designed in Art Nouveau style, the café interior was transformed after the First World War into the Art Deco version we know today – with typical Art Deco marble, mirrors and round tables.

If the café walls could speak, they would tell much of Czechia’s dramatic twentieth century history. During the period of the First Republic it was the meeting place for the country’s cultural elite: the Čapek brothers, the Nobel laureate Jaroslav Seifert, Vítězslav Nezval, Václav Špála and Karel Teige. In 1937 the café watched over the solemn funeral procession of President Tomáš G. Masaryk as it moved along Smetanovo nábřeží [quay], and during the German occupation it was renamed Café Victoria in a verbal assault on the Slavic symbolism of its original name.

Although the café was nationalised in 1948, it served as a haven of dissent from the 1950s onward. The poet Jiří Kolář had his table at Café Slavia, Bohumil Hrabal and Josef Škvorecký were frequent guests, and President Václav Havel met his first wife Olga there in 1953. For President Havel the café held a very special meaning and after the Velvet Revolution he actively campaigned to have it reopened to the public.

Indeed, dramatic events led to the reopening of Café Slavia, which had been closed for renovations after the revolution. When the renovations had stalled for a long time, a group calling itself the ‘Friends of Café Slavia’ took over the café in November 1993 and ran it for two weeks with limited service – with no alcohol and only voluntary contributions. The actions of the ‘Friends of Café Slavia’ garnered interest from the international press and resulted in the eviction of the recalcitrant tenant. The café reopened on 17 November 1997 on the eighth anniversary of the Velvet Revolution.

You will not find the original painting of Slavia, the mother of all Slavs, on the walls of Café Slavia. It was long ago replaced by Viktor Oliva’s painting Absinthe Drinker, which is also replicated on the menu. If you visit Café Slavia and order a coffee, be sure to try their pralines. In addition to desserts and other sweets the menu includes café-style staples as well as sophisticated creations from the Executive Chef Dušan Svoboda who trained at Prague’s Municipal House, where he prepared meals for state visits.

For more information visit www.cafeslavia.cz ►

69

Design and Food

SWEET GEM THE ORIGINAL PASTRY SHOP MYŠÁK EARNED ITS STELLAR REPUTATION THANKS TO THE MASTERY OF THE SHOP’S FOUNDER FRANTIŠEK MYŠÁK AND HIS SON FRANTIŠEK JR. IN ADDITION TO FOCUSING ON FIRST-CLASS PASTRIES MADE FROM QUALITY INGREDIENTS, THE OWNERS PAID GREAT ATTENTION TO BEING GOOD EMPLOYERS. THE REOPENED CAFÉ COMBINES THE BEST OF MYŠÁK’S RENOWNED TRADITION WITH MODERN TRENDS.

František Myšák founded his pastry shop in 1904 and in 1911 he moved it to a beautiful building designed by the architect Josef Gočár. Many famous personalities frequented the shop to satisfy their sweet tooth: the actor Oldřich Nový, the author and moralist J.S. Guth-Jarkovský, the singer Emma Destinová and the poet Josef Svatopluk Machar, who lent his name to his favourite Myšák treat – the Machar chocolate torte with whipped cream. Mr. Myšák was also the favourite pastry chef of Presidents Masaryk and Beneš, a notable distinction in a city that had over seven hundred pastry shops during this time.

In spite of heavy competition František Myšák refused to advertise, believing that the product should speak for itself. He also did not want to open another outlet, as he preferred to manage everything personally. When he died suddenly in 1941, his son František Myšák Jr. took over the business, himself an excellent pastry chef with a rich experience gained abroad. In his shop František Myšák Jr. promoted modern culinary methods and invented new recipes, but his success was short-lived. The pastry shop was nationalised in 1948 and František became a mere employee; in time he lost his position entirely.

Thanks to the Ambiente group, pastry lovers can once again enjoy the sweet gem that is Myšák, where noble tradition meets modern culinary trends. Just as in the past, Myšák today places great emphasis on quality ingredients, mastery of the craft and employee loyalty. The visual style of the new Myšák was developed by Marek Pistora from Studio Najbrt, who designed a logo that recalls Czech typography from the First Republic era and evokes chocolate and vanilla with its colours. The architect Tereza Froňková carefully combined the ornateness of First Republic interiors with large white surfaces and round marble tables. The dominant decorative features include a stunning turquoise wall hanging by Michal Bačák and crystal chandeliers with fauna and flora motifs.

While today’s pastry chefs at Myšák continue to create new desserts, the café’s menu honours tradition – the already mentioned Machar torte, the typical Czech apple pastry and many other divine treats, including a sinful caramel ice cream sundae. And if you are in the mood for breakfast, there is no hurry – at Myšák they serve breakfast all day long.

For more information visit www.mysak.ambi.cz ■

70

RECIPE:

MYŠÁK'S CLASSIC CARAMEL ICE CREAM SUNDAE A TIMELESS CLASSIC THAT TICKLES YOUR TASTE BUDS WITH A RANGE OF IRRESISTIBLE FLAVOURS, COMBINING THE AROMA OF ROASTED HAZELNUTS AND COFFEE-SCENTED CARAMEL. SINFUL YET LIGHT AS A FEATHER! 3 scoops (150 g) of vanilla ice cream | 30 g coffee-flavoured caramel | 100 g freshly whipped cream 25 g chopped candied hazelnuts

STEPS:

Arrange scoops of ice cream into a chilled sundae glass – at Myšák they serve vanilla ice cream made by the Italian ice creamery Crème de la Crème. Make the coffee-flavoured caramel by heating sugar until it turns brown and diluting it with quality coffee, then pour the caramel over the ice cream. Arrange freshly whipped cream on top of the sundae and sprinkle it with roughly chopped candied hazelnuts.

Pour more coffee caramel over the entire sundae for a finishing touch.

Learn more about the history of Prague cafés in a new book by Eva Bendová titled Pražská kavárna: minulost a současnost [The Prague Café: Past and Present] published by Verzone.

So Clicquot, so responsible.

Design

ETERNALLY AVANT-GARDE

A HOME FURNISHINGS STORE DEDICATED TO THE REVIVAL OF TWENTIETH CENTURY CZECH DESIGN, MODERNISTA IS READY TO MEET THE CONTEMPORARY NEEDS OF ITS CLIENTS WITH THE ELEGANCE OF THE FIRST REPUBLIC. partner for the article: Modernista | text: Tereza Škoulová | styling: Lenka Hlaváčová photo: Michaela Karásek Čejková

74

Design

THE SCENT OF LEATHER AND COFFEE PERMEATES THE MODERNISTA SHOWROOM IN THE VINOHRADY PAVILION. FROM HERE YOU CAN ADMIRE THE RENOVATED INTERIOR OF THE FORMER MARKET HALL, DESIGNED AT THE TURN OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. MORE IMPORTANTLY, HERE IS WHERE YOU CAN LAY YOUR HANDS ON ICONIC FIRST REPUBLIC DESIGNS, SUCH AS ARMCHAIRS FROM JINDŘICH HALABALA AND ADOLF LOOS AND CHAIRS FROM VLASTISLAV HOFMAN. NEXT TO FURNITURE THE SHOWROOM FEATURES LAMPS, GLASS, PORCELAIN AND TOYS – SINGULAR HANDMADE PIECES BASED ON HISTORICAL DESIGNS.

The first Modernista store opened in 2000 in a functionalist space in Konviktská Street and initially focused only on furniture restoration. ‘It was the first wave of enthusiasm about old furniture and on every corner you could find beautiful pieces for just a few crowns. Our owner knew how to restore them and we learnt from him,’ says David Kmínek, the heart and the brain behind the current operation.

Modernista’s philosophy has changed over time, and today they make replicas of furniture and accessories based on historical designs. The company has licenses to create replicas of iconic designs from the first half of the twentieth century, including furniture from Jindřich Halabala. And because the needs and lifestyles of today’s customers are different from those living during the First Republic, the company makes replicas that address today’s requirements.

In design and architecture, the First Republic era is defined by names such as Pavel Janák, Josef Gočár, Ladislav Sutnar, Adolf Loos and the artistic collective Artěl.

These creative minds were inspired by a parade of avant-garde movements, or indeed were part of such movements, one reason for why their work captivates to this day.

Also, they did not produce in large numbers, and this explains the rising demand for quality replicas from lovers of the First Republic aesthetic.

Besides ideas, iconic design and love for one’s work, the business requires quality craftsmanship. Modernista makes all products by hand to ensure a faithful reproduction and lasting magic. For more information visit www.modernista.cz. ■ PREVIOUS SPREAD: The H 275 armchair is considered to be one of the most successful of Jindřich Halabala designs. Modernista is licensed to make H 275 replicas, and customers can choose from a range of fabrics and wood stains.

Mirror from a 1930s French entranceway unit and the H 275 armchair designed by Jindřich Halabala; both from www.modernista.cz

76

ABOVE: Glassbor products are made through a specialised glass treatment called staining. The revived brand Artěl builds on the work of an artistic collective active during the First Republic, which folded due to the economic crisis of the 1930s. Artěl’s products are hand-decorated with traditional techniques in Czech workshops.

Clear bowl and glass, Glassbor; Herringbone bowl, Artěl; all from www.modernista.cz

LEFT AND ABOVE: Original Cubist coffee set designed by Pavel Janรกk, Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague.

Porcelain sugar bowl, cup and saucer and coffee pot in zigzag design by Pavel Janรกk; sugar bowl in black line design by Pavel Janรกk; cup and saucer and coffee pot, Goldfinger porcelain; all from www.modernista.cz The Vichr sideboard was influenced by an elegant Rudolf Vichr wardrobe made in the 1930s.

Glass coffee table; Vichr sideboard and round functionalist light fixture; all from www.modernista.cz

ABOVE AND RIGHT: Vases, design by Pavel Janรกk, all from www.modernista.cz Original chair designed by Vlastislav Hofman for the sculptor Josef Maล atka, housed at the Museum of Decorative Arts. A replica of the chair is found in the renovated wedding hall at the Old Town Hall in Prague.

French entranceway unit from the 1930s; Cubist chair designed by Vlastislav Hofman; pot with a lid designed by Pavel Janรกk; all from www.modernista.cz

Design

JAWA LIGHT text and photo: Nanovo archive

At this year’s Designblok SOFFA was dazzled by the Jawa light from Nanovo, a replica of a unique ceiling light built by Jawa factory employees for their Jawa club in the Týnec nad Sázavou Cultural Centre. The centre was opened with great pomp and ceremony in 1961, and in the same year the Jawa team designed the spectacular light, with only eight pieces ever made. Today only one of the original eight remains, and the Nanovo team used it to make their ten limited edition replicas. In building the replicas Nanovo applied original metal working techniques and for lighting they chose modern LEDs, which allow for light dimming. ■ For more information visit www.nanovo.cz/jawa.

83

Architecture

BEACON OF STATEHOOD AN IMPORTANT STOP ON OUR JOURNEY THROUGH CZECHOSLOVAK HISTORY IS PRAGUE’S MUNICIPAL HOUSE. HERE, ON 28 OCTOBER 1918, THE BIRTH OF CZECHOSLOVAKIA WAS PRONOUNCED FROM A STYLISH, ART NOUVEAU BALCONY. partner for the article: Prague City Hall | text: Patrik Florián | photo: Michaela Karásek Čejková and Ivan Král / Municipal House archive

84

WELCOME TO PRAGUE’S MUNICIPAL HOUSE, A MAGNIFICENT CENTRE OF THE COUNTRY’S SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND POLITICAL LIFE. HERE YOU WILL FIND AN EXQUISITE COMBINATION OF ARTISTIC AND ARCHITECTURAL STYLES COUPLED WITH ROOMS THAT WITNESSED THE WRITING OF THE NATION’S HISTORY. THE SITE LOCATED NEXT TO THE POWDER TOWER SERVED AS THE SEAT OF CZECH KINGS AS EARLY AS THE FOURTEENTH CENTURY, AND MARKED AN IMPORTANT TRADE ROUTE THROUGHOUT HISTORY. THE SITE RETURNED TO THE LIMELIGHT IN 1912, WHEN THE CITY OF PRAGUE USED IT TO BUILD A GRAND PALACE DEDICATED TO THE CZECH AND SLOVAK NATIONS.

At the turn of the nineteenth century Prague was experiencing a golden era. Culture and civic life were blooming and beautiful buildings like the National Museum and the Main Railway Station were being built one after another. But Prague was lacking a social and cultural centre of which the city could be proud. The idea to build such a centre gained concrete shape in the first years of the twentieth century, and a site was chosen symbolically opposite the German House. The city engaged the architects Antonín Balšánek and Osvald Polívka, and the building that would become a symbol of national pride and achievement began to take form. The final cost of the most beautiful Art Nouveau building in Prague was twice the original estimate, but the result was worth it. Some of the foremost artists of the era contributed to its glory, including Alfons Mucha, Mikoláš Aleš, Max Švabinský, František Ženíšek and many others. The Municipal House opened on 5 January 1912 to great fanfare.

Whether you pass the building on a walk, while shopping or on the way to the office, you cannot miss its eye-catching facade. The rich exterior is adorned with allegorical figures, flower ornamentation and classical architectural elements. Of note are two statues from Ladislav Šaloun named Humiliation and Revival of the Nation and Karel Novák’s torchbearers carrying the Laterna Magica as well as his mascarons, placed in the voussoirs of the fifteen semi-circle windows on the front facade. The main cupola overlooking Republic Square is dominated by a colourful glass mosaic called Apotheosis of Prague based on a painting by Karel Špillar, which carries the words of Svatopluk Čech: ‘Hail to you Prague! Brave the time and malice as you have resisted all the storms throughout the ages!’ ► LEFT: The hall in which the Three Kings’ Declaration was reached is named after Julius Grégr, the founder of the Národní listy newspaper. The ceiling and walls of the hall were decorated by the painter František Ženíšek.

85

THIS PAGE AND RIGHT: Smetana’s Hall is used mainly as a concert hall and is the largest space in the Municipal House, able to accommodate 1,200 listeners. The walls around the stage were decorated by the sculptor Ladislav Šaloun.

The opulent interiors are more than pleasing to the eye – they incorporate features that were considered very advanced for their time, including elevators, an internal telephone system and a pneumatic tube mail system.

Architecture

The building’s technical facilities were very advanced for the era and included a cooling system connected to two deep wells located under the building, as well as systems for central heating, ventilation, distribution of utility and drinking water and dust removal.

There were also ‘necessities’ of the day such as an ice maker, electrical and hydraulic lift systems, a steam laundry and a drying room, an internal telephone system and a pneumatic tube mail system.

The multifunctional building was conceived as a grand venue for civic and official purposes with facilities to host large-scale receptions, exhibitions and concerts, as well as restaurants and commercial space. The interiors are decorated in the spirit of Art Nouveau and inspired by Asian art to the smallest of details. The largest space is the imposing Smetana Hall, honouring the composer Bedřich Smetana. Other halls are also named after great figures of the Czech nation – Riegr, Sladkovský, Palacký and Grégr. It was in Grégr’s Hall that the so-called Three King’s Declaration was accepted in January 1918, in which national representatives requested autonomy for Czechia and Slovakia and their union into one state. This was a foreshadowing of the pronouncement of the establishment of Czechoslovakia on 28 October 1918, which took place on the building’s balcony. The event is remembered with a plaque commemorating the socalled ‘Men of 28 October’ – Alois Rašín, František Soukup, Jiří Stříbrný, Antonín Švehla and Vavro Šrobár – located in one of the parlours of the majestic building.

In November 1989 the Municipal House became once again the den of political activity when it hosted key meetings between delegates of the Civic Forum led by Václav Havel and representatives of the last communist government. In the same month Czechoslovakia became free of communist rule and the Municipal House was witness, once again, to the writing of history.

After 1990 the Municipal House underwent extensive and careful renovations, which returned the building to its original shining glory. This year the national tabernacle celebrated 105 years of existence and great celebrations await. From September 2018 visitors will be able to view an exhibition dedicated to the centenary of independent Czechoslovakia, which will feature many period documents including the first Czech law hand-written by Alois Rašín.

For more information visit www.obecnidum.cz. ■ RIGHT: On the wall of the Gentlemen’s Club is a plaque dedicated to the ‘Men of 28 October’ with a quote from J. A. Komenský: ‘…the authority over your affairs returns to you, the people of Czechia.’

88

Years ending with the number eight have great importance to the history of the Czech and Slovak nations. Perhaps the most important ‘eight’ is the one belonging to 1918. Nevertheless, on 1 January 2018 we will also remember 25 years from the establishment of the independent Czech and Slovak Republics. Celebrations of the centenary of a state no longer existing will provide a wonderful opportunity to remember the 74 years of our joint statehood. Thanks to our common history, the two nations will be able to celebrate side by side the strong relations that existed within the former federation.

May our beautiful relationship never end.

Adriana Krnáčová Mayor, City of Prague

Fashion

LUNCH AT VILLA WINTERNITZ THE STORY THAT UNFOLDS IN THE FOLLOWING PAGES STRADDLES THE PAST AND THE PRESENT. A FIRST REPUBLIC INTERIOR COMES TO LIFE THANKS TO AN ENCOUNTER BETWEEN YOUNG CZECH AND SLOVAK FASHION, TIMELESS DESIGN AND TRADITIONAL CZECH FARE. text: Patrik Florián | styling: Lenka Hlaváčová and Patrik Florián models: Cyril Dunděra / Agents Model Management and Michaela Křivánková make-up and hair: Marcela Hanke | photo: Michaela Karásek Čejková

92

bird, Art House Hejtmánek | Pink crystal glasses, design Rony Plesl, Rückl | Module Two carafe with a glass, design Thomas Jenkins, Bomma

THIS SPREAD: CYRIL: fedoras, both TONAK | coat and pants, Adam Kost

coffee set with red decoration, design Pavel Janák | ashtray, design Vlastislav Hofman | all from Modernista

THIS SPREAD: MICHAELA: sweatshirt and pants, Chatty | pumps, Baťa | shirt, Nehera, Therapy CYRIL: shirt, Jan Cerny / The Room by Basmatee | pants, Jan Cerny | cardigan, Rukulíbám | shoes, Adam Kost for Baťa

THIS SPREAD: MICHAELA: top, Miro Sabo | bracelet, design Klára Šípková, Deelive CYRIL: shirt, Jan Cerny / The Room by Basmatee | coat, Chatty coffee set with a gold line, design Rudolf Stockar, Modernista | Arabesque glass, design Eliška Kuchtová, Bomma | Silver Lining plate, Butlers | Skuren cutlery, Ikea | roast duck with cabbage and dumplings, Ambiente

THIS SPREAD: La Classica Contura saucer, Villeroy & Boch, Potten & Pannen | Puro Pappoptik bowl and Silver Lining saucer, both from Butlers | sugar bowl, design Pavel Janรกk, Modernista | laskonka, large slice of punch cake, coconut pastry, small slices of punch cake

THE SCENT OF COFFEE PERMEATES THE AUTUMNAL GARDEN. COLOURS AND SHAPES BLEND INTO ONE ANOTHER AND ALTHOUGH AT FIRST THEY APPEAR DISCORDANT, IN THE END HARMONY PREVAILS. THE CLOCK HAS STRUCK TWELVE – TIME TO SERVE ROAST DUCK WITH DUMPLINGS AND CABBAGE. FOR DESSERT THERE IS A SWEET PUNCH CAKE AND A DELICATE, CREAM-FILLED LASKONKA. THE LAST WARM RAYS OF THE SUN GENTLY CARESS THE ELEGANT CRYSTAL. ABSOLUTE STILLNESS – A CLASSIC CZECHOSLOVAK SUNDAY. OR PERHAPS IT’S NOT THAT AT ALL ...

What can a few years change? What about a century? Shortened skirts, men’s clothes in a woman’s wardrobe, the other way around, daring materials and cuts, sports shoes paired with an evening gown. Over the last century our notion of fashion has spun around and come back several times, in the end gathering all the varied influences into one great mix. The Nehera brand, whose roots go back to the First Republic, presents its contemporary minimalist designs on catwalks around the globe, while Baťa produces shoes of an unusual cut. Elsewhere, the latest collections from Czech fashion designers recall Hana Podolská and Oldřich Rosenbaum’s sketches. Although today it may not be common to meet a woman wearing white gloves or a man in a felt hat, most people appreciate a well tailored suit paired with shiny shoes, just as they appreciate an elegant dress. The same way they did during the First Republic.

Villa Winternitz, the setting for our fashion story, was designed and built in 1931

by Adolf Loos and Karel Lhota. It was Loos’ last project. The villa was built for the Prague lawyer Josef Winternitz and his family, who lived in it a mere nine years before the house became the property of Nazi Germany and later the City of Prague.

The family was taken to the Theresienstadt concentration camp in 1943 and later to Auschwitz, where Josef Winternitz and his son perished. Until 1997 the building was used as a kindergarten and its interiors as well as the external facade suffered damage as a result. Josef’s wife Jenny and daughter Suzana did not live to see the villa returned to the family. Today the villa is in the care of Josef Winternitz Stanislav Cysař, Josef Winternitz’s grandson, who has worked tirelessly to renovate his grandparents’ home and to bring it to its current state. The villa serves as a cultural and social space and is available for overnight accommodation.

For more information visit www.loosovavila.cz. ■ We thank Villa Winternitz for making the elegant space available for this fashion story, and Ambiente restaurants and cafés for the food and pastry specialties typical of the First Republic era.

THIS PAGE: MICHAELA: top and pants, Miro Sabo | pumps, Baťa | bracelet, design Klára Šípková, Deelive CYRIL: shirt, Jan Cerny / The Room by Basmatee | pants, Adam Kost | coat, Chatty | shoes, Adam Kost for Baťa

Arabesque water carafe and glasses, design Eliška Kuchtová; Module Two whiskey carafe and glass, design Thomas Jenkins; all from Bomma | Amadeus carafe and Pink crystal glass, design Rony Plesl, both from Rückl | brown glass carafe, stylist’s own

THIS SPREAD: CYRIL: shirt, Jan Cerny / The Room by Basmatee | pants, Adam Kost | coat, Jan Cerny

THIS SPREAD: MICHAELA: coat, Nehera, Therapy CYRIL: coat, Adam Kost La Classica Contura teapot and cup with saucer, Villeroy & Boch, Potten & Pannen | Silver Lining plate, Butlers | apple strudel, Ambiente

Gallery

FIRST REPUBLIC CELEBRITIES MEET FOUR FAMOUS PERSONALITIES OF THE CZECHOSLOVAK FIRST REPUBLIC AND CONTEMPLATE THEIR UNIQUELY PERSONAL OBJECTS. text: Hana Švolbová | styling: Lenka Hlaváčová and Michaela Karásek Čejková photo: Michaela Karásek Čejková

106

THE TWENTY-YEAR PERIOD BETWEEN THE BIRTH OF INDEPENDENT CZECHOSLOVAKIA IN 1918 AND THE ONSET OF NAZI OCCUPATION IN 1938 MARKED THE COUNTRY’S HEYDAY. TWO DECADES OF FREEDOM AND LONGEDFOR INDEPENDENCE SPURRED DEVELOPMENTS IN SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC SPHERES AS WELL AS CULTURE, SCIENCE AND SPORT. TO THIS DAY THE PERIOD OF THE SO-CALLED FIRST REPUBLIC REMAINS A WELLSPRING OF INSPIRATION, A SYMBOL OF STABILITY AND A PICTURE OF A PLEASANT – THOUGH OFTEN IDEALISED – PAST. PERHAPS THAT IS WHY WE STILL ADMIRE MANY OF THE INDIVIDUALS WHOSE CAREERS EMANATE FROM THIS ERA.

Following the end of the First World War, Czechoslovakia developed into a parliamentary democracy with an incredibly fast-paced economy. The country was created from the convictions of several leading personalities and Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, the first president, was one of the greatest authorities of the day. In spite of his prominence, the defining symbol of the era for many Czechs today is not politics, but film. The names of Adina Mandlová, Lída Baarová, Hugo Haas and Oldřich Nový have not lost their lustre, and the nation continues to venerate Jan Werich and Jiří Voskovec, the talented artist duo that straddled the worlds of theatre, film and literature.

The years between the two world wars brought great success to literary giants such as Jaroslav Hašek, whose book The Good Soldier Švejk was translated into 58 languages, and Karel Čapek. In visual arts inspiration flowed from all corners and influenced artists including Toyen, Jindřich Štýrský, František Drtikol, Otto Gutfreund and Jan Kotěra. Great strides were also made in the world of science, into which the Czech chemist Jaroslav Heyrovský brought his contribution with the invention of polarography, for which he later won the Nobel Prize.

Czechoslovak stars also emerged from the world of sports. One of the nation’s most famous footballers of all time was the Austrian-born Josef ‘Pepi’ Bican, who started his football career in Viennese clubs but transferred to Slavia Prague in 1938. Another famous sportsperson of the era was a tiny woman who had conquered a typically male sport – the motor racer Eliška Junková.

The 1920s and 1930s were also a golden era for industry. The Baťa clan, headed by the patriarch Tomáš Baťa, was particularly notable among Czechoslovakia’s many successful entrepreneurs and industrialists. Václav Klement and Václav Laurin made their own distinct contribution to industrial development when they transformed a bicycle repair shop into a factory for bicycles, motorcycles and automobiles, laying the foundations for the Škoda automobile factory. An important legacy was also left by Miloš Havel, the film producer and owner of Lucernafilm whose name is inextricably linked to the Lucerna Palace, Barrandov Studios and Czech cinematography. We could go on, for the period between the wars was rich with fascinating personalities and their stories. Four of these are unveiled in our gallery.

We thank Jakub Zíka for his help in creating this story, the company Modernista for lending us Josef Gočár’s clock and the company Cinolter Antique for lending us their duck statuette.

►

107

Gallery

HANA PODOLSKÁ TO HAVE YOUR CLOTHES MADE AT HANA PODOLSKÁ’S WAS EVERY FASHIONABLE WOMAN’S DREAM DURING THE FIRST REPUBLIC. THE FAMOUS DESIGNER DRESSED PRESIDENTS’ WIVES, FILM STARS AS WELL AS ORDINARY OFFICE WORKERS. SHE WAS ALSO AN ASTUTE BUSINESSWOMAN WHO EXCELLED AT MARKETING. SADLY, THIS EXCEPTIONAL WOMAN MET AN UNFORTUNATE FATE.

Hana Podolská was born Johanna Vošahlíková into the family of a successful builder in 1880.

Her father died young, however, and Hana had to care for her younger siblings at a young age.

She trained as a ladies seamstress at Anežka Fišerová’s in Prague’s Celetná Street, and visited her first clients in their homes. A seminal moment for Hana was meeting the painter Viktor Podolski, a descendent of Polish landed gentry. In Victor she found not only the love of her life, but also someone who supported her ambition unconditionally. Her first dress shop opened in 1908 in Nusle and by 1914 the modest workshop with two seamstresses had transformed into the Hana Podolská fashion house in the famous Lucerna Palace on Wenceslaus Square. After the First World War her business expanded to sell hats and furs.

Instead of looking to Vienna for inspiration, as was common in those days, Podolská loved Parisian fashion and built a luxury brand around her passion. Indeed, thanks to her, Czechoslovak fashion was considered one of the best in Europe during this time. Podolská would travel to Paris to attend fashion shows and was one of the first in Czechoslovakia to employ professional models. She was also a public relations maven. During her regular spa stays in Mariánské Lázně, Podolská’s models would parade daily along the main colonnade wearing her latest designs. Her fashion shows took prime spots on the social calendar, and her clothes were modelled by personalities like the film star Adina Mandlová and the soprano Jarmila Novotná.

Her creations adorned stars in a number of films and her long gown with a fur-fringed cape, featured in the film Kristián, became iconic. Podolská published her own fashion magazine, in which she offered advice and discussed her designs, and her collaborator was the famous art photographer František Drtikol. Her designs were worn by Hana Benešová, the wife of President Edvard Beneš, who herself was considered a fashion icon. Thanks to great popularity, it took up to six months for a dress to be made at the Hana Podolská fashion house.

Hana Podolská’s fairy tale began to unravel when her husband died in 1926 during a hunt, and soon thereafter her eldest son succumbed to illness. After the Second World War her second son’s wife emigrated to the United States, which led to her son’s imprisonment. Once released, he followed his wife. Hana Podolská’s business was nationalised in 1948 and the successful owner and designer became a mere sales assistant. She died lonely in 1972 and left her estate to her carer.

LEFT: Photograph from the film Kristián with Adina Mandlová in a dress made by Hana Podolská (1939) and period sketches of women’s clothes made by Hedvika Vlková for Hana Podolská’s fashion house.

►

109

Gallery

VLASTA BURIAN VLASTA BURIAN WAS ONE OF THE MOST DISTINCTIVE CULTURAL PERSONALITIES OF THE FIRST REPUBLIC, STAR OF THE SILVER SCREEN, STAGE DIRECTOR, SINGER, AUTHOR, MIME ARTIST AND IMPERSONATOR, KNOWN TO CZECHS AS THE ‘KING OF COMEDIANS’. AFTER THE SECOND WORLD WAR THE NATION REWARDED HIM WITH AN UNJUST TRIAL AND PUBLIC CONTEMPT.

Vlasta Burian was born in Liberec in 1891 and moved to Prague’s Žižkov neighbourhood at the age of ten. His father introduced the boy to the theatre at a very young age, and he regularly visited the opera and local theatre performances. Early in his life Vlasta Burian focused on his athletic talents, and played as a goalie for the Viktoria Žižkov football club and later for Sparta Prague, but his passion for comedy eventually took over. Burian made his first – silent – film in 1923, and in 1925 founded his own theatre. Real renown came seven years later with his famous sound film C. a k. polní maršálek [Field Marshall of the Royal and Imperial Army]. Until the onset of the Second World War Vlasta Burian starred in two to four films per year, recorded music and was a regular radio personality. He was a celebrity in the true sense of the word, enjoyed the trappings of fame and was a lively member of Prague’s social scene. Parties at his villa in Prague’s Dejvice neighbourhood, which included a swimming pool and a tennis court, were highly sought out. Sadly, his private life was marred by depression, but his wife Nina was his lifelong pillar of support.

During the Nazi occupation things changed dramatically and Burian became much less active in film. The Nazi propaganda machine took advantage of his popularity and forced him to participate in a radio sketch that ridiculed the Czechoslovak government in exile. Subsequently, in 1944, the Germans shut down his theatre. After the war Burian was arrested and accused of collaborating with the Nazis. At first he was acquitted, but a second trial followed on trumpedup charges and Burian was found guilty based on false evidence. He was jailed for several months and fined half a million crowns. The artist lost his glory and wealth, and prison time left a deep scar on his psyche.

Following his imprisonment Burian was not able to return to the stage for five years, during which he had to do manual work. When he was allowed to return to his profession, it was in B-grade programmes, and the once explosive and energetic actor became a cautious comedian with failing health. In order to make a living Burian performed even when he was ill, including his last performance when he was suffering from pneumonia. He died in 1962 from pulmonary embolism. Justice came to Vlasta Burian post-mortem in 1994, when he was officially exonerated of all charges.

RIGHT: Vlasta Burian’s oil lamp and photographs showing him as a member of the Sparta Prague football club.

►

110

Gallery

ELIŠKA JUNKOVÁ IN THE 1920S CZECHOSLOVAKIA DID NOT HAVE MANY FAMOUS SPORTSWOMEN, BUT THE MOST FAMOUS OF THEM WAS RENOWNED AS THE FASTEST WOMAN IN THE WORLD ON FOUR WHEELS. INTERESTINGLY, THE SMALL YET FEARLESS ELIŠKA JUNKOVÁ HAD TO SECRETLY ENROL IN DRIVING SCHOOL. ON THE RACING TRACK SHE BEAT EXPERIENCED MALE RACERS, INCLUDING HER HUSBAND.

Eliška Junková was born in 1900 in Olomouc as Alžběta Pospíšilová. She was athletically gifted – she swam, cycled and exercised in Sokol – and was also talented in foreign languages. At sixteen Alžběta started to work at a bank in Olomouc where her superior was the six-years older Vincenc ‘Čeněk’ Junek. They began a romance full of drama, with several break-ups and reunions. At eighteen, eager for adventure, Alžběta went abroad and worked in Switzerland and France. When she returned home she found that Čeněk had become passionate about automobiles. She enrolled in a driving school in secrecy, and was one of the first women in Czechoslovakia to obtain a driving license. In 1921 she decided to marry Junek and went with him to a motor show in Paris, where they both fell in love with Bugatti automobiles. Indeed, the couple bought their model T30 directly from Ettore Bugatti. After marriage Alžběta changed not only her surname, but also her first name. Her name Alžběta was translated abroad to Elizabeth and Eliza for short, and from Eliza came the Czech variant Eliška.

Junková entered her first race in 1923 as her husband’s co-pilot. The next year she raced her first solo race on the Lochotín-Třemošná track in Pilsen and won. The following year she won the internationally-recognised Zbraslav to Jíloviště race, in which she narrowly beat her husband.

It was the first time a woman stood on the winning podium in an international-level car racing competition. Many more successes followed both at home and abroad. Eliška Junková became famous and led a busy social life, for which she was dressed, among others, by Hana Podolská.

She exuded style even behind the wheel. Her greatest success was in 1928 at the challenging Targa Florio race in Sicily. The long, open road endurance race on dangerous terrain was exhausting. At one point she took the lead, but desperately tired and with a shoulder injury and broken water pipe in her car, she finished the race in fifth place.

Later that year a tragedy brought an end to Junková’s racing career. During the German Grand Prix, Čeněk Junek’s car skidded and he was thrown out of the vehicle and died instantly. The tragedy led Junková to end her racing career. She turned to her love of travel and visited Sri Lanka, still in a Bugatti. Upon her return she became involved with the organisational side of motor racing, which included her work on the development of the Masaryk circuit in Brno. She married again and worked, among other places, at Baťa’s tyre factory where she helped design better tyres. She died in 1994 at the venerable age of 93.

LEFT: Eliška Junková was a passionate collector of drawings, paintings and figurines of ducks.

►

113

Gallery

JOSEF GOČÁR EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURY ART WITNESSED THE BIRTH OF MANY STYLES AND INSPIRATIONS. ONE OF THESE WAS CUBISM, WHICH IN CZECHIA GAINED A UNIQUE ARCHITECTURAL FORM. A VISIONARY OF THE STYLE WAS THE ARCHITECT AND URBANIST JOSEF GOČÁR, THE FOREMOST REPRESENTATIVE OF CZECH CUBISM AND FUNCTIONALISM.

Josef Gočár hailed from the village of Semín in eastern Czechia, where he was born in 1880 into a brewing family. The young Josef attended secondary school in Pardubice and then moved to the School of Applied Arts in Prague, where he trained under the renowned architect Jan Kotěra. The older architect was undoubtedly very important for Gočár’s career and even employed the young man in his own architecture studio. When Gočár struck out on his own, he began work on his first large-scale projects in Hradec Králové, Jaroměř and Bohdaneč. By the First World War he had created his most important Cubist works, including the House of the Black Madonna in Prague and the Pavilion Gočár in Lázně Bohdaneč. Gočár was also active in artistic circles and was a member of the club Za Starou Prahu [For Old Prague].

The First World War brought the Cubist building wave to a halt and Josef Gočár was conscripted into the army. After the war his work shifted to satisfy national preferences and together with Pavel Janák, Gočár became the main proponent of the ‘national’ arched style of Czech Rondocubism. In this new style Gočár designed Prague’s Legiobanka building – today known as Archa Palace – with statues by the sculptors Otto Gutfreund and Jan Štursa. By the 1920s Gočár’s work was highly renowned and he began to showcase his talents in urbanism. He worked on the town plan for Hradec Králové, which included a regulatory plan for the embankment, and oversaw the building of schools, offices, residential areas and the city’s outer ring road. Following Jan Kotěra’s death he became a professor at the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague and then the rector in 1928. He was a member of the Czech Academy of Sciences and Arts, published actively at home and abroad, and was awarded the French Legion of Honour.

During this time Josef Gočár was also influenced by European Functionalism, though as a distinctive, artistic concept. The crowning example of his Functionalist work is the Church of Saint Wenceslaus in Prague’s Vršovice neighbourhood.

Gočár went into retirement when Czech universities were closed by the Nazis in 1939. He continued to work on design and took part in art and architectural discussions, but he did not build any more buildings. He died at the end of the war in Jičín. In the year 2000 Josef Gočár was named the greatest figure of twentieth century Czech architecture. ■ LEFT: Josef Gočár’s brass clock is a quintessential example of early Czech Cubism.

115

Editor’s Choice

SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE AMONG OUR FEATURED NEW PRODUCTS YOU WILL FIND SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE ON YOUR SHOPPING LIST. JEWELLERY, GLASS, PORCELAIN AND THOUGHT-PROVOKING CARDS ARE SURE TO PLEASE! text and styling: Adéla Kudrnová | photo: company archives

Krakatit Vase, www.ruckl.cz, 12,000 Kč | Puffball Lustre Bird, Iittala, www.arki.cz, 4,750 Kč | Dark Plate, www.bisqit.cz, 2,500 Kč | Untranslatable Word Card Set, www.theschooloflife.com, £12 | Bon Jewellery Box, www.vesselsdesign.com, 3,500 Kč | Luna Girl Nightdress, www.juliestore.cz, 1,350 Kč | Mural Light Object, www.lucetone.sk, price upon request | WAI Bracelet, design Lucie Koldová, www.mooyyy.cz, 3,500 Kč Serving Set, www.medecine.cz, 750 Kč

Sport

SOKOL THEN AND NOW

‘A STRONG MIND IN A SOUND BODY.’ DOES THE MOTTO OF THE FAMOUS ATHLETICS MOVEMENT STILL RESONATE WITH CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY? text: Hana Švolbová | styling: Lenka Hlaváčová | photo: Lina Németh

117

Sport

WHEN IN 1862 JINDŘICH FÜGNER AND MIROSLAV TYRŠ ESTABLISHED THE FIRST SOKOL CLUB IN PRAGUE, WITH THE IMAGE OF A FALCON IN FLIGHT AS THEIR SYMBOL, THE FOUNDING FATHERS COULD NOT HAVE IMAGINED HOW EXPANSIVE THE MOVEMENT WOULD BECOME. BY THE START OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY SOKOL CENTRES WERE AT THE CORE OF CIVIC LIFE IN JUST ABOUT EVERY CZECH TOWN, AND THE ORGANISATION PLAYED A KEY ROLE IN THE ESTABLISHMENT OF AN INDEPENDENT CZECHOSLOVAKIA. ABOLISHED DURING MUCH OF THE COMMUNIST PERIOD, SOKOL REEMERGED WITH VIGOUR IN 1990 TO CULTIVATE SOUND BODIES AND STRONG MINDS.

Most Czechs know Sokol as an organisation dedicated to physical training and development, but since the very beginning Sokol has also promoted cultural, social and educational activities. Tyrš himself was primarily focused on the physical aspect of Sokol, inspired by the physical education of Ancient Greece and by German gymnastics societies. He developed a system of physical education that was initially based on track and field disciplines, boxing and wrestling, and later he added weightlifting and general athletics. But Tyrš also had another intention for Sokol – he wanted to create a movement that could form the basis of an army, and he trained his charges with the notion that every adult Czech male under the age of thirty should be physically ready to serve. Indeed, Sokol members proved to be fit and ready to serve in the First World War. Next to its focus on body and spirit, Sokol had a strong nationalist agenda. Established during the time of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the movement’s ideology took a firm stance against the monarchy and the use of the German language, and it distanced itself from religion. Even after the establishment of independent Czechoslovakia, Sokol retained a strong nationalist ideology and required members to be of ‘Czechoslovak’ or another Slavic nationality. This, of course, presented membership barriers for the Jewish community. Ideological tendencies waned with the German occupation of Czechoslovakia during the Second World War, when Sokol faced Nazi repression and the ceasing of many of its activities. After the war the Communist Party took over the Sokol union and eventually abolished it in favour of the Czechoslovak Union of Physical Education and Sport. Building on the tradition of the Sokol mass gymnastics festivals known as slets, which had been organised by Sokol since 1882, the Communists continued with ideology-fuelled mass gymnastics events known as spartakiadas.

Despite being abolished in communist Czechoslovakia, the Sokol movement lived on through clubs abroad. Sokol leaders met in 1989 to plan for an all-Sokol slet in Paris, ►

118

Sport

and in so doing established the leadership base that renewed Sokol in Czechoslovakia following the November 1989 revolution. The Czechoslovak movement was officially re-established in 1990 and was ready to function as an organisation from the getgo, thanks in great part to the energy of new members. Its greatest post-revolution challenge was to regain properties that had been confiscated by the Communists; thankfully, Sokol succeeded in securing its original headquarters in the famous Tyrš House located in Prague’s Újezd neighbourhood.

With some 1,200 individual clubs, Sokol is today one of the largest civic associations in the Czech Republic and hosts not only various sports, but also cultural and educational activities, including puppet, folkloric and theatre troupes. Sokol’s physical education programme has undergone a number of changes thanks to ongoing developments in the field of sport, and today it offers comprehensive physical education for children as well as fitness training for adults in some eighty disciplines including rhythmic exercises, martial arts and fitness training with dance. And Sokol activities are not restricted to members only – the general public is welcome, from toddlers to seniors and everyone in between. Sokol also continues the tradition of slets, and next year it will celebrate the sixteenth all-Sokol slet in honour of the centenary of independent Czechoslovakia.

In addition to its positive social impact, Sokol has also left a significant physical imprint on the landscape of virtually every Czech town and city. An exceptional chapter of Sokol’s twentieth century history is defined by the building of sokolovnas [Sokol gymnasiums and civic centres], which often resulted in distinctive examples of various architectural styles. And as the case of a small town near Prague shows, Sokol’s architectural imprint is not simply a matter of the past. In Líbeznice, with a population of just 2,000, Sokol has been able to build a new, modern sokolovna lovingly called Dřevák for its magnificent wooden construction and resemblance to the wooden clog.

Nominated for the Czech Architecture Award in 2017, the new sokolovna successfully addresses the combined requirements of a school gymnasium, scout clubhouse, football club venue, preschool, fitness centre, café, table tennis club and a multifunctional hall for dance, music and film screenings. As beautifully stated in its submission for the Czech Architecture Award competition, the new sokolovna is the community’s glue, cornerstone and common denominator, a challenger to our dependence on superficial media, ready to battle the invisible tentacles of smartphones and introduce a generation of children weaned on computers to the joys of playing with a ball. ■

123

s e v i l a t ba film y r a ent place m u r doc ay ou cts us es ew ffe citi · th birth a rom 5 pany of ries f com nds · a o ť t a s la · 5 ilt by b ether azil bu hia · n ia · br ind zec · c atia · cro

s e liv a t a b

script by karolina zalabáková directed by karolina zalabáková, petr babinec editor libor nemeškal director of photography lukáš gargulák sound jan hála opening sequence jiří fiala creative producer of czech television martina šantavá produced by lukáš gargulák, karolina zalabáková www.batalives.cz

Travel

INVENTING ZLÍN IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO WRITE ABOUT ZLÍN WITHOUT MENTIONING THE BAŤA COMPANY. EXPLORE WITH US A TOWN THAT AT THE HEIGHT OF ITS GLORY FUNCTIONED LIKE A WELL-OILED MACHINE. text: Helena Novotná | photo: Michaela Karásek Čejková

125

Travel

THE AMBITION TO BUILD AN IDEAL CITY IS NOT NEW. IN THE RENAISSANCE PERIOD THE ITALIAN THEORIST LEON BATTISTA ALBERTI DEFINED THE CONCEPT OF AN IDEAL CITY, AND A FEW CENTURIES LATER THE FRENCH ARCHITECT CLAUD NICOLAS TRIED TO PUT THE CONCEPT INTO PRACTICE WITH THE CITY OF CHAUX. BUT IT WAS NOT UNTIL THE ERA OF INDUSTRIALISATION THAT SUITABLE CONDITIONS EMERGED TO TRULY REALISE SUCH A GOAL. ONE EXAMPLE IS ZLÍN, A TOWN IN SOUTHERN MORAVIA THAT QUICKLY CHANGED INTO AN ENTREPRENEURIAL AGGLOMERATION. THE BUILDING FEVER WAS FUELED BY THE AMBITIONS OF TOMÁŠ BAŤA, ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL FIGURES OF THE CZECHOSLOVAK FIRST REPUBLIC.

Although Zlín’s unchangeable genius loci is shaped by factory buildings and colonies of small Baťa houses, the town’s history reaches back to the Middle Ages. Shoemaking has been a Zlín profession since the town’s founding, and by the sixteenth century the shoemakers’ guild had a strong standing there. The first large-scale shoe factory was built in 1870, but most shoes continued to be made in small workshops. That all changed when the railway came to town, and it is no coincidence that Baťa’s shoe factory was built opposite the railway station.

The spirited Tomáš Baťa founded the company with his siblings in 1894, when he had not even reached adulthood, building on a family shoemaking tradition that went back to the seventeenth century. Within a few short years Tomáš overcame some early failures and gradually built a business empire that had an enormous impact on Zlín and on the life of all its residents, whether they worked at the shoe factory or not. Tomáš Baťa stood at the helm of the company for 38 years until 1932, when he died tragically in a plane crash. Afterwards the company continued to develop and expand across the globe under the leadership of Tomáš’ stepbrother Jan Antonín. The Baťa era came to a close in Czechoslovakia with the end of the Second World War and the ensuing political changes, and Baťa headquarters moved to London and later to Toronto. The company did not return to its hometown until after the democratic revolution of 1989. ► LEFT: Nowhere else will you experience the cult of Tomáš Baťa more intensely than in his own villa. Simple for its time, the villa was designed and built by the architect Jan Kotěra, whom Baťa met in Prague. The building survived careless renovations during the second half of the twentieth century, and today it is managed by the Tomáš Baťa Foundation, which is also based on the premises.

127

THIS SPREAD: A small treasure has survived in the villa – a leather travel case containing Tomáš Baťa’s toiletries. Visitors to the villa can climb up to the gallery encircling the small tower to find an expansive view over the factory complex. This is exactly why Baťa had his villa built on that location – so he could keep a constant eye on his company.

Travel

During the 1930s and 1940s Zlín became an important centre of modernist architecture and Tomáš Baťa was the driver of the town’s transformation. He entrusted the systematic building of the functionalist town to the architects Jan Kotěra, František Lydie Gahura, Vladimír Karfík and Miroslav Lorenc. Thanks to their efforts Zlín was able to absorb a massive influx of Baťa factory workers and their families: at the beginning of the twentieth century Zlín’s population was barely 3,000, by 1937 it was nearly 40,000! Baťa’s architects created not only factory and public buildings, but also family homes – all in a uniform style.

One of the few buildings that strays from the standard is paradoxically Tomáš Baťa’s own villa, where he lived with his wife and only son, Tomáš Baťa Jr. Construction of the villa began in 1909 under a local architect, but it was soon taken over by the then already famous Prague architect Jan Kotěra. He created a family residence surrounded by gardens from which Baťa could oversee his factory as if in the palm of his hands. The interior has retained many beautiful period details, despite the fact that it underwent several ill-considered alterations during the communist years. Since 1998 the villa is home to the Tomáš Baťa Foundation, which manages the Baťa legacy.

Exposed red brick, visible structural frames, large sectional windows – these architectural elements greet you on Zlín’s every corner. In 1924 the architect František Lydie Gahura began a reconstruction of the expansive factory complex, and with his constructivist style shaped the town into its present day aesthetic. But shoes have not been made in the factory for a number of years now, and questions hang about what to do with the complex, as many of the buildings are in disrepair. Some have been renovated and given a new function, such as the famous building 21 – Baťa’s skyscraper – which once served as the company’s main administration building and with its 77 metres was the tallest building in Czechoslovakia at the time. The architect Vladimír Karfík started work on building 21 in 1937, five years after Tomáš Baťa’s death. Open to the public since 2004, one part of the renovated building serves as the regional government’s administrative centre and the second part is dedicated to the building’s history. A notable feature is the elevator, which was conceived as Jan Antonín Baťa’s mobile office. ► PREVIOUS SPREAD AND RIGHT: Exposed red brick, visible structural frames and large sectional windows in metal frames – these are typical elements of the architecture built in Zlín between the two world wars. The architect František Lydie Gahura created a distinctive industrial style with a universality that could be applied equally to a factory complex, a shopping centre or a cinema.

132

Travel

It has everything an office needs – a writing desk, a telephone, a washbasin with warm water – yet the boss never got to use it. By the time the elevator was completed, Jan Antonín had already emigrated.

Building 21 is not the only original building to have successfully rejoined town life. The Baťa Institute has been based in buildings 14 and 15 since 2013, and their permanent exhibition mapping the history of various Baťa factories is well worth a visit. It includes everything from a collection of Baťa shoes and wooden shoe lasts to models of Baťa’s aeroplanes. Other tenants include the regional library and the regional art gallery. The space between the buildings has also received attention with the creation of a new platform for exhibitions and cultural events.

The Baťa factory is found – unusually for today’s zoning practices – right in the heart of town, next to the larger than life Náměstí Práce [Work Square], which was built in the 1920s. The size of the square corresponds to its original purpose – to serve as a public space for the 30,000 people working in the factory next door. To this day it is fringed by public buildings commissioned by Tomáš Baťa, essentially nicer variations of the factory buildings: the cinema, schools, the social and cultural centre that today houses the Interhotel Moskva, and the shopping centre Prior. The shopping centre was the first to be built and originally had windows that narrowed with upper floors and lent the facade a sense of movement. That feature was lost in a later reconstruction, but hopefully will return with a renovation that is soon to commence.

The austerity and functionality of Baťa’s buildings also left a mark on Zlín’s sacral architecture. The Chapel of St. Wenceslaus in Kudlov appears to have come from a Baťa architecture catalogue, so it is no surprise that its architect was František Lydie Gahura. Baťa himself donated the red bricks, Zlín’s traditional construction material.

The spirit of functionalism also lifted the Evangelical Church of the Czech Brethren, designed by Vladimír Karfík, which is considered one of the most successful sacral structures built in Czechoslovakia between the two world wars. ►

PREVIOUS SPREAD, LEFT AND NEXT SPREAD: On the eighth floor of building 21, Baťa’s skyscraper, are the original offices accessed from corridors lined with wood panelling. The third floor of building 14 is dedicated to a permanent exhibition documenting the history of the Baťa company. The same building is the home of the regional art gallery; the regional library is housed at number 15.

137

THIS AND NEXT SPREAD: Today most ZlĂ­n residents live in the so-called BaĹĽa houses, which were built mainly through the 1930s in large settlement blocks. Many of the houses are slowly losing their original form due to modifications and additions, but some authentic houses remain unchanged.

Travel

A unique and still very much alive chapter of the Baťa construction enterprise are the residential buildings he commissioned for his employees. Plans for these began to take shape as soon as the factory was established, and the first brick houses were erected by 1912. Full-scale construction got underway a few years later and culminated in the 1930s. Far from a hurried response to the housing needs of thousands of employees, the construction followed a well-developed master plan, initially drawn up by Jan Kotěra and then built on by František Lydie Gahura. Residential construction began south of the factory in the area called Letná and then proceeded with amazing speed in four other locations. Construction followed a standardised plan, and just as standardised was the selection of who would be assigned which type of housing. Every employee had an employment card with personal details as well as information about skills and ambitions and whether the employee was willing to relocate. On the basis of this information employees were assigned housing: a four-unit house, a duplex, a single family home or a villa. In this way the Baťa company shaped the personal lives of his employees and created a social order not only through their positions in the company, but also through their assigned housing. This was done as a matter of practicality, as Baťa assumed that a satisfied and well looked after employee would be loyal and hard working. Baťa houses are today largely protected by heritage laws, though residents alter them to suit their needs. In one Baťa house located in Nad Ovčírnou is the Infopoint centre, dedicated to the architectural and sociological importance of Baťa houses, both now and in the past.

Today Zlín is more than a Baťa open-air museum and contemporary architects are gradually shaping a modern town whose life is no longer dictated by a shoemaking empire. One new building comes from the London studio of the renowned architect Eva Jiřičná, a Zlín native. The Congress Centre she designed was completed in 2010 and serves as a venue for various cultural and social events as well as the home of the Bohuslav Martinů Philharmonic Orchestra. The most pronounced elements of this modern structure, which divides Zlín residents into those who love it and those who hate it, are the facade made up of zig-zag screens and the segmented roof inspired by a diatom – a unicellular organism with a cellular wall made of silica. ►

RIGHT: The Chapel of St. Wenceslaus in Kudlov is proof that industrial architecture can satisfy the needs of sacral structures. The chapel was built between 1927 and 1929 by František Lydie Gahura from bricks donated by Tomáš Baťa.

144

Travel

Modernisation has also touched the film studios that were built during Baťa’s time.

Quick to see the potential in cinematography, Tomáš Baťa took a chance on film commercials in addition to his famous printed advertisements. In 1936 he built studios in Zlín to make commercials and instructional films, but thanks to their ideal technical conditions the studios soon began to make full length features, travel documentaries and animations. In these studios Hermína Týrlová created the first Czech animated film Ferda the Ant and the legend of Czech cinematography Karel Zeman made his Journey to the Beginning of Time there. While part of the complex is still used to make films, another part was rebuilt in 2016 into a space called Filmový uzel [Film Node], a cultural centre named in honour of Hermína Týrlová and one of her famous animated films. One can easily spend an entire day at the Film Node, whether at the exhibition dedicated to the history of Zlín’s film studios or in one of the animation workshops, where visitors can try their hands at traditional animation techniques.

In building their industrial town, Zlín’s builders have always intended for the town’s open spaces to remain open. The earlier mentioned Work Square connects to Komenský Park and Gahura Green, both of which have recently undergone revitalisation. Gahura Green is a stretch of parkland that runs along the town’s axis and ends at the former memorial to Tomáš Baťa, which was rebuilt in the 1950s to serve as the local cultural centre. During Communism the park included a memorial to the former Czechoslovak President Klement Gottwald, after whom Zlín was renamed Gottwaldov for a number of years. Gottwald’s memorial was taken down in 1990 and the freed space remained underutilised for a number of years. Recently the Zlín studio Ellement Architects found a playful and poetic solution for the space: the expansive strip of green was intersected by recessed footpaths, their high curbs serving as low benches. The paths also serve as a display for the short text pokaždé úplně jiná slova [always completely different words], which appears six times in total and each time can be interpreted differently. Perhaps depending on whether you are beginning or finishing your tour of Zlín.

For more information visit www.ic-zlin.cz, www.filmovyuzel.cz, www.tomasbata.com, www.batova-vila.cz and www.14-15.cz. ■

LEFT AND NEXT SPREAD: Contemporary architects are not holding onto the nostalgia of Zlín in the First Republic era, but are responding to the modern needs of Zlín residents. New work includes the Congress Centre designed by the Zlín native Eva Jiřičná and revitalisation of the Komenský Park and Gahura Green. In addition, the film studios have dedicated four floors of their space to the local film community.

147

Editor’s Choice

CZECH THESE OUT CONTEMPORARY CZECH PRODUCTS AND TRADITIONAL BRANDS FROM THE TIME OF THE CZECHOSLOVAK FIRST REPUBLIC ARE WORLD-CLASS AND WORTHY OF YOUR ATTENTION. text and styling: Adéla Kudrnová and Helena Novotná | photo: company archives

Axa Honzík Armchair, www.slezakovyzavody.cz, 27,443 Kč | Narwhal Whiskey Backpack, www.playbag.cz, 5,500 Kč | Tokyo Sport Hat, www.tonak.cz, €132 | Camel Wooden Toy, design Ladislav Sutnar, www.modernista.cz, 990 Kč | Eurasian Eagle-Owl Poster, www.nanovo.cz, €52 Riveted Suitcase, www.kazeto.com, €29.50 | Black Wood Handmade Earring, www.nehera.com, €420 | Split Chair, www.ton.eu, 11,150 Kč Orlík 39 Watches, www.prim.cz, 49,900 Kč

Creative People

STUDY IN ROSE QUALITY GLASS AND MASTERY OF CRAFT ARE TWO TRADITIONAL SYNONYMS FOR THE FAMILY BRAND RÜCKL. NOW WE CAN ADD REVIVAL AND MODERN DESIGN TO THE LIST. text: Helena Novotná | photo: Michaela Karásek Čejková and Rückl archive

151

Creative People

OVER CENTURIES CZECH GLASSBLOWERS AND GLASS CUTTERS HAVE REFINED THEIR GRAFT TO PERFECTION, MAKING CZECH GLASS, IN PARTICULAR CRYSTAL, WORLD RENOWNED. THE FAMILY GLASSWORKS RÜCKL, WHICH HAS BEEN MAKING GLASS FOR MORE THAN 170 YEARS, HAS MADE ITS OWN CONTRIBUTION TO THE PRESTIGE OF CZECH GLASS. BUT IT WAS NOT SMOOTH SAILING. THERE WAS NATIONALISATION IN 1945, REJECTION OF THE COMPANY’S RESTITUTION CLAIM IN THE 1990s AND THE GLOBAL FINANCIAL CRISIS. THIS YEAR RÜCKL HAS EMERGED WITH A NEW IDENTITY UNDER THE ARTISTIC DIRECTION OF RONY PLESL.

The history of Rückl glassworks is long and entangled. Although the year 1846 is imprinted under the company’s playful logo, the glassmaking family tradition goes back to the end of the eighteenth century. That is when the Rückl family moved from Switzerland to the forests of today’s Šumava and where in 1846 they founded their first glassworks.

Fifty years later Antonín Rückl built another glassworks in Nižbor near Beroun, where production of lead crystal glass continues to this day. The company enjoyed its golden years during the First Republic, and even during the Second World War it was able to maintain production and keep its employees out of the battlefield. Dark clouds gathered over the successful family business, however, and the factory became nationalised in 1945 under a decree issued by President Beneš. After the Velvet Revolution the family’s restitution request was denied, as nationalisation had taken place before the Communist take-over in 1948, and Jiří Rückl, the founder’s great-grandson, had no other choice but to purchase the glassworks from the state. One would be hard-pressed to find stronger proof that for the Rückls, glass is more than just business. Indeed, glass is the family’s calling. After rebuilding the devastated infrastructure, the journey back to the top of the glassmaking industry was marred by the global financial crisis. But then, in 2016, a new chapter began with the arrival of the investor Martin Wichterle.

Significant change soon followed and three stars of contemporary Czech design and architecture – Rony Plesl, Aleš Najbrt and Josef Pleskot – were invited to be part of Rückl’s rebirth. Aleš Najbrt and his graphic design studio stand behind Rückl’s new visual identity and overall rebranding, and the architect Josef Pleskot is responsible for the renovation of the glassworks complex in Nižbor, which will commence this winter. Although the gable of the glassworks still bears the company’s old logo, after ► RIGHT: Rony Plesl works in several art disciples, but he is best known for his work with glass – the right person to take over the artistic direction at Rückl and to lead the development of the new collection. SOFFA photographed the new artistic director on an imaginary bench made from glass moulds.

152

THIS SPREAD: Rßckl’s first collection developed under the lead of Rony Plesl builds on tradition, yet pushes it into modernity. On the left are new Rusalka covers. Above on the right is part of the St. Nicholas jewellery box and the Metamorphosis and Krakatit vases. Below is the top part of the jewellery box named Alchemist.

Creative People

the renovation visitors will be greeted by Studio Najbrt’s modern signage: fresh, simple, with a clear link to the glassworks’ history and its original connection to chemists, whom Rückl supplied with glass bottles.

The sculptor and glassmaker Rony Plesl has taken charge of artistic direction, and this autumn he returned Rückl to the field of contemporary Czech design with the successful collection of crystal glass named Czech Heaven [České nebe]. The new collection pays tribute to the Rückl glassworks tradition, its masterful craft and the historical ornamentation so characteristic of the brand. Seamlessly blending tradition with innovation, Czech Heaven features pastel tones, unusual combinations of materials and a distinctive style of cutting crystal. The rose and grey tones in the collection are a novelty for the glassworks, which in the past produced only clear crystal. Moving beyond tradition a bit further, Rony Plesl added his own inspiration from nature, history and the landscape. The new collection also honours icons of Czech history and culture, from whom it borrowed names for its products. The result is truly Czech and truly heavenly. Čapek’s Krakatit, Dvořákova’s Rusalka and Kafka’s Josef K. – Rückl has risen from the ashes thanks to current leading lights in architecture and design, and in turn its first collection has borrowed names from leading lights of the past. While the Golem vases and carafes exude stability and robustness, the Rusalka covers are as delicate as the melancholic figure from Dvořák’s famous opera. The Metamorphosis vase morphs seamlessly from small to medium and finishes with a tall, elongated version. The vase named Krakatit after the 1922 Karel Čapek novel, which itself was inspired by an Indonesian volcano, is adorned with ornamentation that resembles a starry night sky. Czech Heaven also brings together cultural figures such as Amadeus, St. Nicholas, Josef K. and the Alchemist. The collection is rounded off with Pink, a series of drinking glasses in pink and clear crystal featuring decorative motifs of stars, the love heart and the written word.

The star-studded Czech Heaven was first introduced to audiences at Designblok 2017, and shortly afterwards Rückl opened its first flagship store in Prague’s historical centre. Over the coming months the glassworks will be busy with an extensive renovation of the Nižbor complex, but plans are already underway for adding new crystal-studded stars to their fresh collection.

For more information visit www.ruckl.cz. ■ LEFT: The Nižbor glassworks has been making crystal glass continuously since 1903, when the facility was founded by Antonín Rückl. At present the complex is awaiting renovations led by the Czech architect Joself Pleskot. The historical glassworks offers up a treasure trove of material, including early twentieth century designs that have inspired the new Czech Heaven collection.

159

RIGHT: The glassworks stores several thousand wooden moulds, each with its precise location and number indicating the product to which it belongs. The manufacturing of wooden moulds requires the same hand-precision work as glass cutting, and every millimetre counts.

#soffamag

SUBSCRIBE AT SOFFAMAG.COM

SUBSCRIBE To subscribe, visit shop.soffamag.com or email us at soffa@send.cz.

SOFFA NEWS Use the QR code to sign up for our newsletter.

EDITORIAL STAFF

CONTRIBUTORS

Adéla Kudrnová I editor in chief adela@soffamag.com Lenka Hlaváčová I art director & designer lenka@soffamag.com

Tereza Škoulová | writer Hana Švolbová | writer Vojta Hurych | photographer André Reis | photographer Marcela Hanke | make-up artist

Adéla Havelková I photographer adela.h@soffamag.com Lina Németh I photographer lina@soffamag.com Michaela Karásek Čejková I photographer michaela@soffamag.com Róbert Kováč I graphic designer robert@soffamag.com Helena Stiessová I managing editor editor@soffamag.com Helena Novotná I editor & editorial office assistant helena@soffamag.com Patrik Florián I editor & fashion stylist patrik@soffamag.com Max Smrčka I production manager max@soffamag.com Terézia Bělčáková I sales manager terezia@soffamag.com Petr Novák I sales manager petr@soffamag.com Dita Loudilová I event manager dita@soffamag.com

© SOFFA, s.r.o. 2017 I All rights reserved www.soffamag.com I info@soffamag.com Cover photo: Michaela Karásek Čejková CONTACT www.soffamag.com info@soffamag.com DISTRIBUTION Would you like to become a SOFFA distributor?

Email us at stockist@soffamag.com

SUBSCRIPTION MANAGED BY SEND předplatné, spol. s r.o.

Ve Žlíbku 1800/77, hala A3, Praha 9 tel. +420 225 985 225, soffa@send.cz PRINT H.R.G. spol. s r.o.

Svitavská 1203, 570 01 Litomyšl PAPER COVER: PlanoArt® 300g/m² INSIDE PAGES: PlanoArt® 150g/m²

Ingrid Martonova I English translation Peter Stannard I English revision & proofreading PUBLISHER SOFFA, s.r.o. Špálova 444/6 162 00 Praha 6 – Střešovice www.soffamag.com IČ: 03055671 / DIČ: CZ03055671 Registration: MK ČR E 21947, ISSN 2336-5943 Volume 24 published on 14 December 2017

Find the winners of the SOFFA contests from the October issue at www.soffamag.com/contests

HIGHLIGHT: Slice of History DESIGN: Eternally Avant-garde TRAVEL: Inventing Zlín ARCHITECTURE: Loos, Mies van der Rohe and Gočár FASHION: Lunch at Villa Winternitz SPORT: Sokol Then and Now

ISSUE THEME: CZECHOSLOVAKIA 2018 will mark the centenary of the founding of Czechoslovakia.

In SOFFA 24 we honour the so-called First Republic and salute the beginnings of Czechoslovakia’s statehood. Join us to celebrate this momentous jubilee!

www.soffamag.com LIFESTYLE

£ 10 I 240 Kč

SOFFA: JOY FROM THE HEART OF EUROPE Discover the best and the most beautiful from the Czech Republic and Central Europe: exquisite design, inspirational stories, unknown interiors and hidden gems well worth your visit.