Reconstruction of Villa Čerych will begin at the turn of November and December

Česká Skalice - In Česká Skalice in the Náchod region, the reconstruction of the monumentally protected Čerych Villa is beginning, which will become the Kaplicky Creative Centre for approximately 60 million crowns. This is a project of the Kaplicky Centre Foundation, which operates the villa. The reconstruction of the villa will cost 37 million crowns excluding VAT, with additional expenses required for its furnishing or landscaping, said Jozef Lucák, director of the foundation, to ČTK today. The villa has belonged to Eliška Kaplický Fuchsová, the widow of architect Jan Kaplický, since 2022.

"The long-awaited extensive reconstruction of the rondocubist Čerych Villa in Česká Skalica from the 20th century, which also featured in Havel's Leaving, will begin at the turn of November and December," said Lucák.

The modernization of the villa - construction part, according to him, will be completed in March 2025, and the occupancy permit must be obtained by the end of September that year. "According to the conditions of the National Recovery Plan (NPO), from which the Kaplicky Centre Foundation has obtained nearly 40 million crowns, the launch of the creative center will take place sometime between October and December 2025," Lucák told ČTK. Support from the NPO, according to him, is intended for the construction part and partly for the furnishing.

The total costs for establishing the center are around 60 million crowns, including technology, building equipment, garden modifications, or financing projects that will form the program of the creative center.

During the construction phase of the project, the villa will receive a new roof with the original covering and attic spaces, where a multifunctional hall will be created, which will host screenings focused mainly on architecture and audiovisuals. The functions of two other lecture halls on the ground floor will also be restored, where the most original interior elements have been preserved. "Further modifications will bring gastronomic facilities to Villa Čerych, new gallery spaces, and an increase in accommodation capacity, which will primarily be used by participants of the creative center's programs from among students, professionals in the field, and creatives," Lucák stated.

The next phases of work will focus on the restoration of the garden according to the design of Josef Kumpán. Garden modifications are expected to begin during the villa renovations.

Villa Čerych has never undergone a complete reconstruction; the only significant investment was the roof replacement in the 1970s. During the renovations, cultural activities on the villa grounds will be partially maintained, mostly involving concerts held in the garden. "The construction site is defined in such a way that the garden will not be fully affected," Lucák said.

Since 2001, the owner of Villa Čerych has been the Foundation for the Development of Civil Society (NROS), which received the property with the adjacent garden as a gift from the Čerych brothers, to whom the property was returned in restitution. The mission of the villa is to serve as an educational, cultural, and outreach center.

The establishment of the center also fits into a broader concept of preserving the legacy of the Kaplicky family in the Náchod region. Jiřina Kaplická, the mother of architect Jan Kaplický, was born on March 30, 1901, in Náchod, where she spent a large part of her life. For this purpose, the representatives of Náchod approved a memorandum of cooperation with the Kaplicky Centre Foundation last December. Jan Kaplický (1937-2009) was a prominent architect who worked in Britain after his emigration from what was then Czechoslovakia in 1968.