The relocation of the Memorial of National Literature is postponed by two years

Prague - The Memorial of National Literature will move to its new seat in Prague's Bubenč only in 2021, which is two years later than initially planned. The spokesperson for the memorial, Aneta Křižková, informed ČTK. According to her, the reason for the delay are structural problems with the building's statics that could not be predicted during the schedule preparation. Completion of the construction is therefore planned by the end of 2020.

The memorial has been based in Strahov Monastery for decades, and its new home will be the renovated Petschkova Villa. In its new headquarters, it will also open new spaces including an exhibition dedicated to Czech literature.

"The current situation suggests that it will be postponed for two years. We certainly will not be moving there (to the villa) this year," Křižková told ČTK. Information about moving this year was mentioned two years ago when the renovation of the Petschkova Villa began. According to the previous estimates, the renovation was supposed to cost about 200 million crowns.

The new logo of the institution, external designation of the building, and the graphic design of the exhibition will come from a competition organized by the Czechdesign organization, which is responsible for the development of design in the Czech Republic. This was stated by Jarmila Řehořková, the spokesperson for Czechdesign. The architectural studio Objektor is in charge of the exhibition's design.

"The new visual identity should represent the institution in the context of moving to new spaces, as a modern Museum of Literature that will appeal to visitors through unique, simple, modern, yet timeless visual communication that places the institution alongside world museums," stated Vladimír Uhlík, head of the memorial's collection presentation department.

The Memorial of National Literature was established in the 1950s after the communist regime forced the Premonstratensians to leave Strahov Monastery. In 1952, the Memorial of National Culture was founded within it, which took over the Strahov Monastery, including the funds of its library and the funds of the monastic libraries. The PNP as a museum of Czech literature emerged from it in 1953.

In the early 1990s, the monastery was returned to the order, and the memorial remained in small spaces. Since then, a new place for the institution has been sought. The PNP’s collections consist of 2,000 collections with a total of seven million archival items.

In 2005, the government decided to transfer the Petschkova Villa, and in 2006 added a nearby building in Pelléova Street. Both buildings were taken over by the PNP management in 2006. The smaller one on Pelléova Street is used for exhibitions, lectures, or literary programs. Originally, both buildings were to be opened for the needs of the memorial by 2009, but the work was delayed due to court disputes since Prague also claimed rights to the building. The courts lasted until 2012.

The so-called third Petschkova Villa on V Sadech Street was built in 1930. After renovation, the PNP will have, among other things, an exhibition dedicated to modern Czech literature, which had no space in the rented premises at Strahov.