Prague 10 will complete the renovation project of Čapek's villa by mid-year

Publisher
ČTK
13.02.2024 21:05
Czech Republic

Prague

Ladislav Machoň

Prague - Prague 10 aims to have a project for the reconstruction of part of the Vinohrady twin villa, where the writer Karel Čapek lived, completed by mid-year. Subsequently, a tender for construction work will be announced, after which a museum dedicated to the writer's life will be opened in the house. Ján Bruno Tropp, the spokesperson for the city district, informed ČTK about this. The municipality purchased part of the house in 2013 for 43.9 million crowns. In the other half of the building lived the writer's brother Josef, whose descendants still own it.


The Čapek brothers had the twin house built in Vinohrady in 1923 and 1924 according to the design of architect Ladislav Machoň. Representatives of various administrations of the tenth city district have been talking about the reconstruction since the purchase of half of the house. So far, a structural-historical and restoration survey has been conducted, as well as an inventory and storage of the original furnishings along with Čapek's extensive archive of documents.

"Our ambition is to create the impression for future visitors that they have stepped into the 1930s shortly after Karel Čapek sent off the Friday Club," stated the mayor of the district, Martin Valovič (ODS). He added that the municipality also does not want to turn the villa into an overloaded tourist attraction, which will be reflected in the museum's operation. "The operation will be regulated similarly to how it is in the Tugendhat Villa in Brno. It allows entry only to small groups of visitors," he added.

Sensitive modifications will also be made to the garden, which is shared with the second part of the building, thus limiting public access significantly. Deputy Mayor Tomáš Pek (TOP 09) added that given the number of items and archival materials preserved in the villa, there are also considerations for creating another museum space with its own depository. According to him, the municipality already has a study prepared for such a project.

Before starting work, the city district plans to continue the educational program in the villa, consisting of thematic and staged lectures held in cooperation with the Mana theater or tours as part of the Open House festival. The municipality also plans to compile a documentary film from the visual recordings of the preparations for the museum and is considering creating a 3D interactive model of the villa.
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