The Slavic Epic by Alfons Mucha will be installed in the Savarin Palace in Prague

Prague - The Slav Epic by Alphonse Mucha will be housed in the Savarin palace near Wenceslas Square in Prague. The agreement was signed today by representatives of the capital city, the Mucha Foundation, and the Crestyl company. The company will create the appropriate spaces for the cycle of 20 canvases in Savarin. The exhibition will be conceived as a journey through the life of Alphonse Mucha, said Ondřej Micka, spokesperson for Crestyl, to ČTK today. The draft agreement was approved by Prague councilors on January 31.

"With today's signed agreement with the Mucha Foundation and Crestyl, we are initiating the process of ending the legal dispute, and we have simultaneously confirmed our intention to temporarily entrust the Slav Epic to the Savarin project for 25 years, where it will help support Prague's tourism," said Hana Třeštíková, councilor of the capital city (Prague for itself), whose portfolio includes culture and tourism in the metropolis. The lease duration in Savarin will be 25 years, and the capital will have an option to extend the lease once for an additional five years, under the same conditions, unless otherwise agreed between the city and the developer.

The Savarin project is being developed on a plot of land measuring 1.7 hectares. Upon completion, it is expected to connect Wenceslas Square with Na Příkopě, Jindřišská, and Panská streets, according to Micka. A garden is to be created in the middle. The completion date is anticipated within three years from the start of construction, Micka added.

The construction of the permanent exhibition should be completed within four years of receiving a final decision on the location of the Savarin palace. The zoning decision was issued in March 2020 but has not yet become legally binding. According to its spokesperson, Crestyl has committed to cover all costs associated with the construction of the exhibition space, including interior furnishings. The spaces will be created according to the design of the architectural studio of Thomas Heatherwick in cooperation with the Mucha Foundation.

The agreement is expected to end a long-standing dispute between John Mucha and the capital city regarding the ownership of the canvases. According to the terms of the agreement, Mucha was to commit to recognizing the city's ownership rights to the canvases and withdrawing his lawsuits within 30 days of signing. Prague, on the other hand, is to commit to not relocating the paintings elsewhere than to its own exhibition spaces designated solely for the epic, as the painter Alphonse Mucha wished.

The Slav Epic, consisting of 20 large-format canvases, is currently exhibited at the castle in Moravský Krumlov. The capital city has lent it there for five years. According to the mayor of Moravský Krumlov, Tomáš Třetina (TOP 09), the contract is in effect until the end of 2026.

Mucha painted the cycle from 1910 for the next 18 years. The painter bequeathed the paintings to the capital city with the condition that Prague would build a space for them, which has not yet happened. The first 11 canvases of the epic were exhibited in 1919 at the Clementinum in Prague, and between 1920 and 1921 they gained success at exhibitions in New York and Chicago. The entire epic was first exhibited in 1928 at the Trade Fair Palace in Prague, and the paintings were transferred under the administration of the Gallery of the Capital City of Prague. In 1933, the canvases were rolled up and stored in the depot. They were not exhibited again until 1963 at the castle in Moravský Krumlov. However, after 1989, the castle, which previously housed a railway school among other things, fell into disrepair.