The Jesuit College in Kutná Hora

On the 18th March 1998 the Czech Museum of Fine Arts, Prague, was entered in the land register as the owner of the large complex of the former Jesuit College in Kutná Hora, opening the way for this major piece of Baroque architecture to return to the life of the splendid town. This was not, however, the beginning of fresh transformations in the former Jesuit College's function. The handing over of the College to the Czech Museum of Fine Arts by the Czech Ministry of Culture was preceded by an initiative from the part of Kutná Hora's council, as a result of which the Czech army left the building, enabling it to be used in way much closer to its original purpose.

The Jesuit College in Kutná Hora was built on a dominant site, and features prominently in views of the town, forming a striking part of its characteristic silhouette. It is the work of architect Giovanni Domenico Orsi (1633(?) - 1679). Together with Carlo Lurago (1615 - 1684) and Francesco Caratti (between 1615-20 - 1677), he is one of the three most important architects active in the Czech lands during the early Baroque period. G. D. Orsi stands out chiefly for his ecclesiastical architecture, and his designs anticipate the High Baroque.

The Jesuits arrived in Kutná Hora in 1626, but it wasn't until 1667, over forty years later, that they began building the extensive college. The stucco decoration of the façade's details and the interior of the building show that the construction work began with the north wing. The construction then gradually continued along the main wing in the direction of St Barbara's Cathedral and was completed before the mid-18th century with a central traverse wing with a summer refectory whose architectural design was probably in part the work of Kilián Ignác Diensthofer (1689 - 1751). At that time a raised passageway connecting the Jesuit College with St Barbora's Cathedral was also built, but it no longer exists. In this way, the building acquired its ultimate form in the shape of a reversed letter 'F'. The original aim, to complete the building in the shape of the letter 'E' was never fulfilled.

In addition, a terrace was built along the main façade at the edge of the slope down to the Vrchlice valley. In the second decade of the 18th century it was lined with sculptures by the Jesuit sculptor František Baught.

The abolishing of the Jesuit order in 1773 led to the college being transferred under the administration of the army. The building was adapted for this new purpose in about 1776-1777. Subsequent reconstruction was recorded much later on, between 1843 and 1844. It was probably then that the central tower, taller and more slender than other two, was taken down. In its place there remains a low attic gable. The outline of the building, given a dynamic quality by three verticals, was thus fundamentally disrupted in contradiction to the logic of the original architectural plan. The round towers in the rear courtyard of the former college were probably built between 1856 and 1858, when part of the building was adapted for use as a military training institute.

Subsequent reconstruction was connected with the modern history of the Czech state. The building served military use until the beginning of 1997, primarily as a storage site. The aim of the reconstruction that the Czech Museum of Fine Arts is planning with the architect Jiří Krejčík is to create the greatest possible affinity between the individual buildings of the Jesuit College from the point of view of their disposition and with regard to their authentic appearance from the time that this complex was initially built.

The Czech Museum of Fine Arts has built up a fine and balanced collection of Czech 20th-century art which, until now, was only possible to exhibit at occasional temporary shows tracing particular themes. It has been impossible for reasons of space to create a permanent exhibition of the museum's artworks in its own building in Prague.

The austere early Baroque interiors and extensive exterior spaces of the Jesuit College in Kutná Hora are highly suitable for the installation of such a series of artworks. Their architectural quality and scale are also suitable for the creation of a multifunctional culture centre integrating various fields of the arts. The reconstructed spaces will thus provide a venue for the 20th-century art collection of the Czech Museum of Fine Arts, but also for the collections of Baroque fine and decorative art from the extensive collection of the Central Bohemian Heritage Institute, an exhibition about the history of the Jesuit College where, for example, Bohuslav Balbín once lived and worked, and a Czech animated film collection brought together by Krátký film Praha a.s. A large variable space will be devoted to temporary exhibitions of modern and contemporary art from the Czech Republic and other countries. The spaces of the Jesuit College will also create the setting for music of various kinds, theatre ranging from 'traditional' to fringe expression on the boundary between various individual art forms. The Kutná Hora Arts Centre will also host contemporary dance, film, social events, seminars, symposia and creative workshops. The Jesuit College complex will, of course, offer its visitors other possibilities of spending their free time: there will be a literary and jazz restaurant-café, a bistro for light refreshments and a store selling art souvenirs and literature.

Conceived this way, the 'centre of modern and contemporary art' will not only be linked to its location in a town included in the UNESCO list of world heritage sites and the central Bohemian region, but from the outset will seek to forge links with the arts scene throughout the Czech Republic and elsewhere, establishing contacts with partner institutions at home and abroad.

Ivan Neumann