Pardubice want a figurative sculpture of Kašpar on Míru Street

Pardubice - A statue of aviation pioneer and local native Jan Kašpar could stand on Míru Avenue in Pardubice. The area between the Česká pojišťovna building and the Magnum palace could also be renamed to a square bearing his name. The winning design from a competition two years ago for a Kašpar memorial in the shape of a mast has been rejected by the city, which would prefer to see a figurative sculpture on Míru Avenue, Mayor Martin Charvát (ANO) told reporters today.
    The jury in the 2013 competition selected architect Petr Pinkas's proposal as the best, featuring a 37-meter-high column with a wind sleeve and signal. The original cost estimate for the memorial was 1.2 million crowns, but due to its complicated installation, it later increased to 2.7 million crowns. The column would have to be anchored into the rock bed at a depth of twelve meters. Aviation experts and historians also rejected the design, and a protest petition was signed by more than 1,200 people. According to opponents, a realistic sculpture depicting him with a large Blériot propeller and dates of his aviation successes better captures the essence of aviation. However, the design for 1.8 million crowns came in second place.
    "The competition has been concluded; the councilors decided that we will not proceed with Mr. Pinkas's design. Today we are addressing the legal status of the matter so that we can somehow approach a new supplier or a broader group, but we will prefer a statue form," said Charvát. According to him, there are already too many columns and wires on Míru Avenue, and the small square would deserve a more human-like form as a memorial. He personally favors the second proposal in the competition ordered by academic sculptor František Bálek and his collective.
    The city spent 425,300 crowns on awards for the winners of the architectural competition, jurors, an exhibition, and a catalog. The municipality paid 370,000 crowns for the project documentation of the winning design.