The new head of the Olomouc Museum of Art will establish the Central European Forum

Olomouc - The new director of the Museum of Art in Olomouc, Michal Soukup, plans to focus in the coming years on the Central European Forum project, which includes the reconstruction and extension of the Museum of Modern Art. His priority will also be to improve contact with the public, which should be aided by the museum's new website and the establishment of a new marketing department. Soukup, who took office in April, replaced the long-time head and founder of the country's third largest institution of its kind, Pavel Zatloukal, who has retired.
    The Central European Forum (SEFO) project has been in the planning stages for several years. Inside the architecturally bold building, modern artworks from across Central Europe were to be exhibited, and a garden featuring sculptures and archaeological finds was planned for the rear part of the site, along with an international research center as part of the museum. The opening of the forum was scheduled for this year, with a ceremony in Olomouc being marked by the culture ministers and experts from all the Visegrad Group countries.
    Soukup's predecessor stepped back from the project because he did not secure the necessary half-billion grant from European funds. So far, it has also not been possible to purchase the necessary plots in the gap on Denisova Street.
    "I consider the SEFO project to be absolutely vital for the further development of the Museum of Art. We urgently need to construct a building in the gap; the current state is unsustainable in the long term," Soukup told journalists today. He added that the museum's storage facilities are full and the library is bursting at the seams. "We would also be unable to meet European standards for exhibitions and care," Soukup pointed out.
    The museum's management now intends to focus primarily on acquiring the last two plots of land. "This is absolutely necessary for the continuation of the SEFO project," the director added, and emphasized that the museum is currently working hard to acquire the parcels. According to him, the project would then need to be refreshed and started anew, which would mean updating the project specifications and announcing an architectural competition.
    In addition to this project, the Museum of Art, under the leadership of the new director, aims to improve contact with visitors in the coming years, and the website should be available in both Czech and English. In the future, the museum plans to digitize its collections and publish them online. The director also wishes to maintain the unconventional free admissions on Wednesdays and Sundays. No personnel changes or entrance fee adjustments are planned.
    The Museum of Art in Olomouc is one of the most visited tourist destinations in the Olomouc Region, with the number of visitors to its exhibition spaces reaching 226,000 last year. The museum manages approximately 176,000 collection items, placing it just behind the National Gallery in Prague. Through temporary exhibitions and long-term displays, it showcases artistic culture from ancient times to the present across three venues – the Museum of Modern Art, the Archdiocesan Museum of Olomouc, and the Archdiocesan Museum of Kroměříž.