Zaorálek canceled Staňek's selection process for the director of the National Gallery

Prague - Minister of Culture Lubomír Zaorálek (ČSSD) canceled the selection process for the director of the National Gallery Prague (NGP). He informed journalists before today's cabinet meeting. The selection process was announced by his predecessor Antonín Staněk (ČSSD) before his departure from office at the end of July. Staněk dismissed the former director of the gallery Jiří Fajt in mid-April, justifying it with serious economic irregularities. This step led to protests and prompted discussions about his resignation. Zaorálek will also review another decision made by Staněk, according to which the Hadí lázně in Teplice is no longer a cultural monument.

Former NGP director Fajt welcomed Zaorálek's decision. According to him, it is necessary to define what priorities NGP should have. "Whether they are cultivation and education, multicultural openness, a diverse program offering aimed at the general public, and strengthening the international prestige of Czech cultural heritage and contemporary art, that is what we have implemented with colleagues in recent years, or whether the priorities are different today," he told ČTK.

However, he believes that the management and financing system must adapt to the mentioned content. NGP also needs to change the legal framework of its operation, and according to the former director, it is necessary to consider strengthening the personnel structure. "I consider the thoughts about dividing the gallery into old and modern or contemporary art to be completely opportunistic; this step would only lead to the undesirable marginalization of the institution on the international scene and to the practical extinction of the National Gallery as such," commented Fajt on one of the possible considerations regarding the institution's future direction.

Zaorálek stated today that the currently announced process was inadequate. "Announcing a new procedure is not something that can be done in a few weeks. The first thing is that I have canceled it. The second is that I am reaching out to some experts in this field so that we can start discussing the parameters," he said. According to him, the long-term perspective of the gallery is crucial.

Jan Chmelíček, who is temporarily leading the press department of the Ministry of Culture, told ČTK that Zaorálek has not yet considered a change in the leadership of NGP. Following Fajt's dismissal, Ivan Morávek temporarily leads it, having been appointed by Staněk. According to Chmelíček, Zaorálek is already negotiating with experts who should help the minister announce a new selection process. It is unclear when NGP, with a budget of several hundred million and large investment plans, will have an official director. The Ministry of Culture originally wanted to know the name resulting from the competition in February next year.

Staněk announced the competition upon his departure from the Ministry of Culture on July 31, the application deadline was September 30, and according to Zaorálek, no one has applied for it yet. According to him, this confirms that the selection process was probably not in order. Staněk explains today's step of his successor by saying that the pressure from the leadership of the Social Democracy for a quick announcement of the process was nonsensical. On May 9, the ČSSD leadership instructed Staněk to prepare the process by the end of May after experts criticized Fajt's dismissal. A few days later, the minister announced his resignation from the government. "The expert community had space for discussion, but even after two months, there were no conclusions. I agree with Lubomír Zaorálek that this will be a very complicated process," Staněk wrote on Twitter.

Zaorálek will also begin reviewing another decision made by Staněk shortly before his departure from office, according to which the Hadí lázně in Teplice is no longer a cultural monument. Media reports indicate that Staněk resolved a longstanding dispute despite the objections of heritage conservationists and the appeals committee in the last hours of his term and accommodated the owner and Teplice developer Jaroslav Třešňák.

On Friday, Zaorálek plans to travel to Olomouc, where he wants to address the situation following the dismissal of the head of the Olomouc Museum of Art (MUO), Michal Soukup. Staněk dismissed him along with Fajt.