In the Trade Fair Palace, it was possible to see exceptional works as well as feces

PRAGUE - Ten years after the reopening of the Prague Trade Fair Palace, this significant architectural monument has once again become one of the centers of Prague's cultural life. The National Gallery, which has permanent exhibitions of art from the last two centuries in the palace, has already organized a number of important exhibitions here, and many other social and commercial events take place, from trade fairs to conferences and fashion shows to receptions.
The Trade Fair Palace is the most visited of the National Gallery's (NG) venues. Last year, more than 112,000 art lovers visited it. Its new facade clearly indicates, unlike in the past, that the NG is located there. A public library and an internet café have been established, and large sculptures are installed in front of the palace.
However, the decade of the NG in the Trade Fair Palace has also been accompanied by a number of scandals. The Czech visual arts scene has been polarized for several years by attitudes towards the leadership of the National Gallery under Milan Knížák, who has many opponents among theorists and artists who dislike his concept for the gallery. For example, in 2002, due to the situation at the NG, where many employees left after Knížák took over, the artistic group PodeBal stuck a brick to the glass facade of the palace, which looked as if it was flying through the glass. Last November, six young visual artists, three of whom were members of the Rafani artistic group, staged a protest directly in the palace's exhibition space.
The scandal was accompanied by the announcement of the Jindřich Chalupecký Award, a prestigious award for Czech artists under 35 years old, in 2000. Knížák had the laureate of the award, David Černý, escorted out by security after a dispute over the location of his installation. The artist then refused to enter the gallery while Knížák was in charge. President Václav Havel presented the award to Černý on the sidewalk in front of the Trade Fair Palace. A dispute arose over the installation of the exhibition of past award laureates the following year, after which the NG subsequently withdrew from hosting exhibitions of finalists.
The management of the NG has distanced itself from other exhibitions held on its premises several times in the past. Three years ago, Knížák criticized the exhibition of photographer Josef Koudelka, and last year he had a previously approved tapestry exhibition taken down. "We will under no circumstances allow space for kitsch, degenerate art, and blackmail," Knížák explained to the attendees of the vernissage.
The Trade Fair Palace is not only home to permanent collections of 19th-century art, modern and contemporary art, but also hosts a number of important exhibitions. This year, for example, it hosted a large international biennale of visual arts. However, this also did not pass without controversy. Just as two years ago, the NG was to co-host the biennale with the Italian magazine Flash Art, led by Knížák's longtime acquaintance Giancarlo Politi. The two partners parted ways after disagreements, resulting in Prague having two biennales - one in the Trade Fair Palace and one organized by Politi in Karlín.
The palace not only serves as a venue for NG exhibitions, but also hosts a number of commercial events. The contract partner of the NG for renting spaces in the Trade Fair Palace (up to 5,000 square meters) is AC Expo, which also organizes specialized fairs and social advertising events in the palace. At the beginning of December, it was transformed into the most expensive domestic car showroom, and in October, it hosted a grand fashion show by Christian Dior.