The library and the ministry will sign a memorandum on the possible construction of the blob

Prague – Representatives of the National Library and the Ministry of Culture will sign a memorandum today with Eliška Kaplicky Fuchsová regarding the new library building according to the project of the late architect Jan Kaplický. Eliška Kaplicky Fuchsová will provide the copyright and documentation for the project known as the blob. The Ministry, in turn, will try to gain the government's consent for the construction of the library, and the National Library will begin negotiations with the capital city.

Architect Jan Kaplický won with the design of the new National Library (NK) building in 2007. The then director of the NK, Vlastimil Ježek, wanted to address the spatial issues of the institution with the new building. However, the competition sanctioned by the International Union of Architects ended up in court due to changes in the rules during its course.

Then-President Václav Klaus and the city leadership dominated by the ODS, led by then-Mayor Pavel Bém, opposed the construction of the blob in Letná. The construction was ultimately scrapped. Subsequently, some Prague politicians sought other suitable plots for construction, with proposals put forth for Stodůlky, Strahov, and Pankrác among others. Before the elections in 2009, a party named Blob was even formed, aimed at advocating for construction according to Kaplický's design.

The National Library then addressed its spatial shortage by completing and reconstructing repositories in Hostivař. However, among librarians, voices calling for a new building in the city center have been heard again for several years.