Praha will lend the Slav Epic for five years to Moravský Krumlov

Prague - Prague will loan the Slav Epic by Alfons Mucha to the castle in Moravský Krumlov. The paintings will be located there for five years. This was decided today by Prague city councilors. The reason for the transfer is the lack of space in Prague where the Epic could be permanently exhibited. The paintings were displayed in Krumlov from the 1950s until 2011, when the then leadership of the capital took them away. During a several-hour discussion, opposition councilors criticized the proposal put forward by Prague's leadership, who also suggested that the canvases be temporarily placed at the castle in Zbraslav. This was not approved.

The cycle of paintings consists of 20 large canvases that Mucha painted from 1910 for another 18 years and dedicated to Prague. Since 2010, the Epic has been a cultural monument. The paintings are now in the deposits of the Gallery of the Capital City (GHM).

"Since November 2018, I have been investigating the condition of the Epic, part of which was exhibited in Prague and the other in Brno. It was clear that it was necessary to have a plan for what to do with it next. This proposal only addresses temporary placement, but for us, it is of course crucial where it will be permanently. That will be in Prague and it will meet the author's conditions, technical conditions, and so on," said councilor Hana Třeštíková (Praha Sobě).

According to Třeštíková, the city leadership chose the transfer option because it allows for the paintings to be exhibited in the shortest possible time. They should be displayed by the middle of next year. Prague will now begin negotiations with Krumlov on the contract. Subsequently, a workshop will be held on November 8 to explore all options for permanent placement in Prague.

At today's council meeting, the mayor of Moravský Krumlov, Tomáš Třetina (TOP 09), said that the residents of the town have come to love the paintings and have taken them to heart. The town is also renovating the castle and wants to build a gallery there. "The Epic will be presented at the castle in a complete and unified manner, and the city will incur no costs," Třetina said.

The relocation of the paintings was criticized by coalition councilor and chairman of the cultural committee of the city council, Jan Wolf (KDU-ČSL). According to him, the cycle of paintings has a value of five to ten billion crowns. "The city cannot afford to gamble with a cultural monument," he stated. He pointed out that the decision could influence a court dispute over ownership between the city and the painter's relative, John Mucha, to the detriment of Prague.

In contrast, the mayor Zdeněk Hřib (Pirates) defended the relocation, "Prague is the mother of cities, and it seems to me that some of you perceive that relationship as raven-like. Our interest is equal development of the regions; if that does not happen, we will have to deal with many more problems," he said. The placement in Krumlov was also supported by the chairman of the United Forces for Prague councilors, Jiří Pospíšil (TOP 09). "For us, the main criterion should be that the artwork is exhibited," he said.

Chairwoman of the opposition councilors, ODS Alexandra Udženija, said that Hřib should do everything to keep the canvases in Prague.

Wolf then appealed to Prague patriotism and called for the protection of the Prague monument. "Let us be Praguers with a capital P, and not praguers with a lowercase p," he said. Opposition councilor Patrik Nacher (ANO) stated that moving the Epic will symbolize the current coalition of Pirates, Praha Sobě, and United Forces.

The councilors also debated the suitability of placing the canvases in the castle in Zbraslav, a suggestion from the opposition, but the councilors rejected it. Some councilors pointed to the risk of flooding in Zbraslav. Wolf, along with a representative of the castle's owners, said that during the catastrophic flood in 2002, the water was only in the basement and the paintings were not at risk. Furthermore, the castle is set to have protection against a five-hundred-year flood built.