The capital city wants to open the studio of Hana Wichterlová to the public

Prague - A café and an informal gallery, which would also feature works by Wichterlová, could be established in the studio of sculptor Hana Wichterlová in Prague's Újezd. The city council plans to entrust the studio to the administration of the Gallery of the Capital City. This is evident from the material approved by the city council today. However, the city must first negotiate the removal of the land from the administration of Prague 1, known as disaffiliation.

"It depends on Prague 1 whether they will be willing to disaffiliate this studio. On the other hand, because we are aware that Prague 1 is primarily concerned with the lands adjacent to this property, it is noted in the press that we are only discussing the footprint of the property in question, and all the adjacent parcels that are undeveloped would remain part of the city district," said the councilor for culture, Jan Wolf (KDU-ČSL/Trojkoalice), to ČTK.

If the land with the studio were under the administration of the capital city and the surrounding lands remained with Prague 1, it would depend on the approach of the local city hall whether they would maintain the garden that enhances the genius loci. The family of the sculptor, who is ready to donate artistic items and studio equipment to the Gallery of the Capital City, wishes for a sensitive and dignified restoration of both the studio and the adjacent garden. Another wish of the family is for the studio to be accessible to the public. The studio requires renovation, which is estimated to cost 6.3 million crowns. Annual operating costs are around 400,000 crowns.

The Ministry of Culture is deciding whether to declare the studio a cultural monument. The Heritage Department has all the necessary documentation, and a non-final decision could be made within three to four weeks, said spokesperson Simona Cigánková to ČTK.

Hana Wichterlová was one of the most significant interwar sculptors. The now dilapidated small-town studio and the adjacent garden were among the favorite meeting places for Czech artists and intellectuals. The sculptor died in the studio in 1990. Her brother was chemist Otto Wichterle, who invented contact lenses.