During the first bout of nationalization of key enterprises in Czechoslovakia after the Second World War, it became clear that not even the construction sector could escape the centralization effort. The structure of hundreds of private companies and architectural firms was not compatible with the planned economy, which ultimately lead to the realization of the notion of industrialized construction sector, rationalization of design, and application of scientific methods to architectural work – an idea championed already in the 1930s by Karel Janů and Jiří Voženílek, above all. Both now became central players in the establishment of the new design and construction apparatus. Jiří Voženílek became the first director of the PA-100 enterprise – Stavoprojekt – in 1948. The majority of architects and designers had joined the institution, which made it probably the largest architectural ‘firm’ in the world. Despite initial issues with nationalization of the design and construction sector, the institution was in operation for forty years, before it exceeded its limits.

Stavoprojekt Trnava, Trenčín, Piešťany

The first part of the exhibition follows on from the doctoral research of Lucia Mlynčeková. In 2022, her research has concentrated on the project institute Stavoprojekt Trnava together with the affiliated studios in Trenčín and PIešťany, which is reflected by the installations in four display cases. The first display case contains a map of all project institutes in Slovakia, including Stavoprojekt Trnava and the affiliated studios. The remaining cases depict the floor plans of the buildings of each individual studio (Trnava, Trenčín, and Piešťany), accompanied by interviews with the contemporary witnesses, who reminisce about their work during the 1970s and 1980s. The installation was co-authored by Marek Badinský, student of the Faculty of Architecture.  

Models of selected buildings from the second half of the 20th century in the former Czechoslovakia

During the winter semester of 2022/2023, the seminar lead by Lucia Mlynčeková, Klára Ullmannová, and Petr Vorlík focused on the examination and interpretation of buildings built in the second half of the 20th century, namely the 1970s and 1980s. Students were tasked with creation of architectural models representing their own attitudes towards the buildings based on their previous research. The goal was not to produce scale replicas – rather to transform a comprehensive idea the students deemed crucial into the form of a model. The selected buildings are of different purposes, both social and healthcare facilities were considered. The different scales underline the multifarious selection; the students worked with a variety of alternatives ranging from the urban the urban scale to artistic details. Materials gathered by the students during the course of the semester (such as plans and documentation, period photographs or texts) are concentrated in the accompanying “archive boxes” as part of the installation.

Predskokan otrok – Stavoprojekt

Predskokan otrok is an experimental electronic music project by Miroslav Tóth. It is a live performance created by mixing different forms of IDM, techno, glitch, drone ambient, or generative music. The project resulted from a social experiment, originating from Tóth’s performances for younger audiences at techno parties. He examined the question of the difference between being a support act and being a slave. Tóth currently works on his third album Stavoprojekt in collaboration with the graphic designer and architecture theoretician Lucia Mlynčeková. The album is inspired by Lucia’s research of archive materials of Czechoslovak architecture. The plans and designs become models for a mapping in the concert venue, as well as for the music itself. The audio-visual composition is their first collective art performance.

Author of the project: Lucia Mlynčeková
Accompanying texts: Lucia Mlynčeková, Miroslav Pavel, Miroslav Tóth, Jan Zikmund
Translation: Klára Ullmannová
R​​​​​edaction, curator: Miroslav Pavel