Architect Stránský is exhibiting drawings of local buildings in Luhačovice

Zlín - Architect Karel Stránský is exhibiting from today in the Vincentka hall at the spa square in Luhačovice in the Zlín Region drawings of significant buildings from Luhačovice. Visitors can view three dozen drawings, including famous buildings by Dušan Jurkovič, which significantly influenced the appearance of the largest Moravian spa. The exhibition titled "Luhačovice through the Eyes of an Architect" will last until June 15.
According to Stránský, the aim of the exhibition is to showcase as many significant buildings as possible that document various architectural styles. "The interwar period attracted many architects from the Brno Technical University to the spa town, which is why there are buildings represented that are marked by various styles, such as Empire, Art Nouveau, but also Constructivism," said the architect.
The character of the spa is, according to him, influenced by the strong personality of architect Jurkovič. "The strength of Jurkovič's buildings lies in the fact that he perfectly mastered carpentry construction and joinery work. The folk architecture can be felt in his buildings, which is why it is so close to us," mentioned Stránský, adding that Jurkovič's style also influenced the character of other buildings, even though he did not realize them.
The exhibition is divided into three parts, the first showing the beginnings of spa treatment in Luhačovice up to World War I. This period is represented by, for example, the chapel of Saint Elizabeth, today's Jurkovič House, the Cottage, the Hydrotherapy Institute, the House of Bedřich Smetana, or the children's sanatorium Vlasta. The second part covers the period between the two world wars and afterwards, when, for instance, the inhalatorium, the Social House, the spa square, the Vincentka hall along with the colonnade, and the adjustment of springs were created. The final part captures buildings from the more recent period, the fountain in front of the town hall, the Radostova Sports Complex, Hotel Zálesí, and Sanatorium Miramare.
The Luhačovice spa is a candidate for inclusion on the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage list. The spa complex is significant primarily because, within a relatively small area, there is a number of architecturally valuable spa facilities mostly from the first third of the last century, with 16 national cultural monuments. The Czech Republic justifies its candidacy by pointing to the exceptional value of Luhačovice as an illustration of the phenomenon of therapeutic spa treatment at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries and a reflection of contemporary views on the construction of "cities in greenery."