5. 6.–10. 6. 2025
Opening: June 4th, 2025 at 7 pm, the main building of UMPRUM, nám. Jana Palacha 80, Prague 1
Exhibition venues:
UMPRUM, nám. Jana Palacha 80, Prague 1
UMPRUM Technology Center, Mikulandská 134/5, Prague 1
Afterparty
June 4th, 2025 from 11 pm
Bike Jesus, island Štvanice 1125, Prague 7 - Holesovice
At the beginning of June, UMPRUM will open to the public again. The school-wide show of final and semester works ARTSEMESTR Summer 2025 will show how students respond to studio assignments and how their work evolves. For the second year in a row, the projects will be presented not only in the historic building on Jana Palacha Square, but also in the modern, open space of the UMPRUM Technology Center on Mikulandská Street. ARTSEMESTR regularly brings a plethora of works from the fields of design, graphics, architecture, applied and fine art. From June 5th to 10th, visitors can look forward to original and team work on a variety of themes.
ARTSEMESTR has traditionally been one of the most popular and most frequently visited exhibition shows of the Academy of Arts, Architecture, and Design in Prague. For students, this event is the highlight of the semester and an opportunity to show how their projects respond to what is happening around them and what social or creative questions they are asking themselves. All students from across departments regularly present their work here, making ARTSEMESTR a unique opportunity to gain insight into current issues in contemporary art and design.
"UMPRUM has long emphasized the relevance of issues related to everyday life, the improvement of life around us and the employment of its graduates. This is also the case this year, as the school celebrates its 140th anniversary. Emphasis on these values, which are also reflected in the students' final and semester projects, has been placed from the very beginning of the school. This continuity has been recalled, among other things, through the lecture series Art Yesterday and Today," says UMPRUM Rector Jindřich Vybíral. The ARTSEMESTR exhibition has traditionally presented both individual works and inter-studio collaborations of various scales and levels.
The Textile Studio’s assignments encompass all of these criteria. In one of their key projects, students revisited the roots of the Textile Studio by collaboratively creating a large-scale tapestry made from Czech sheep’s wool for a public space—just as their predecessors once did. Additionally, they partnered with architect Eva Franch i Gilabert, head of Studio of Architecture II, on the Water Parliaments project. As part of this collaboration, they designed a series of flags that critically explore the journey of food to our tables. This work is currently on display at the Venice Architecture Biennale within the Catalan Pavilion.
New perspectives on housing and urban planning are also being introduced by the UMPRUM architecture studios, which address socio-economic and ecological issues. The Studio of Architecture I offers ways to make Ústí nad Labem a great place to live. The Studio of Architecture II brings a thoughtful speculative design of interclass housing and the Studio of Architecture III deals with a new urban vision of an ecosystem bringing a symbiotic coexistence of people, buildings and nature, including animals.
The design studios have established partnerships with Czech glass companies. The Studio of Furniture and Interior Design, for example, collaborated with the Rückl Glass company to create a series of objects reflecting the story of glass. Meanwhile, the Product Design Studio designed a collection of beverageware for the Květná 1794 Glass company. Additionally, in partnership with the textile sorting and recycling organization Diakonia Broumov, the studios addressed the issues of recycling and repurposing textiles. The Studio of Fashion and Footwear Design also collaborated with this social cooperative, focusing on the upcycling of selected textile materials.
As every year, ARTSEMESTR brings a number of impulses for reflection and bold solutions to various questions and topics. Studio projects will now be supported by a voluntary admission fee.
Performance:
May You be Among the Survivors – Ruta Richter Putramentaite, Lucie Vrbíková, and Adina Voldrábová
4. 6. 2025 at 7 pm
Courtyard of the UMPRUM Technology Center, Mikulandská 134/5, Prague 1
On the opening evening, Ruta Richter Putramentaite—a student of the Studio of Fine Arts I—will perform with Adina Voldrábová and Lucie Vrbíková in the courtyard of the UMPRUM Technology Center.
Studios and themes
Studio of Architecture I Andrew Kiel, asst. Jakub Herza, asst. Viktória Mravčáková: Ústí nad Labem: Searching for Spaces of Ecological and Social Injustice—How Ústí nad Labem Can Become a Great Place to Live for Everyone. Examples are drawn from authentic situations and spaces that can improve life in the city. Semester-long collaboration with Romea Muryń & Francisco Lobo (Locument) // Final Project: A final workshop that uses the medium of film to communicate reflections on the city, its problems, and its opportunities.
Studio of Architecture II / A2 Future Architectures Platform / Eva Franch i Gilabert, asst. Alžběta P. Brůhová, asst. Kateřina Vídenová: The C-Word in Architecture: On Housing, Power, and the Architecture of Class – an exploration of the intersection between architecture and socioeconomic structures. Through three successive assignments—A Board Game on Architecture and Class, The Real Estate Agency of Class, and The Design of Interclass Housing—students produced analyses and architectural proposals. The outcome is a speculative yet thoughtfully considered design for interclass living. // Final Project: Future Architectures Real Estate OFFICE – a comprehensive architectural design for a residential building accommodating residents from different socioeconomic backgrounds.
Studio of Architecture III / Imrich Vasko, asst. Shota Tsikoliya: Urban Vision 10000: urban vision as an ecosystem that includes people, houses, and nature. A vision of urban expansion that will offer space for 10,000 people, but also for other species from bacteria to animals and plants. The visions will be presented using the specific cities of Jindřichův Hradec and Ružomberok as examples. // Final Project: builds on the semester assignment.
Studio of Architecture IV / Roman Brychta, asst. Markéta Mráčková, asst. Barbora Šimonová: THEATRE – 100 Years since the Founding of the Osvobozené Theatre, 120 Years since the Birth of Voskovec and Werich. This anniversary served as inspiration for exploring theatre architecture. Students designed theatres with a capacity of 200–400 seats for selected sites. Their designs respond to the classical typology of theatres as well as the current demands of public building typologies within the urban fabric. // Final Project: Theatre Space – Stage – a more detailed exploration of theatre spaces, with the possibility of designing a stage for a chosen dramatic work.
Studio of Industrial Design / Ivan Dlabač, asst. Vlastimil Bartas: 1st year - shape study on the topic of emotions; 2nd year - mechanical principle; 3rd year - design and budget; 5th year - exercises on practical design // final project: 1st year - design language marker - leash for a large dog; 2nd-5th year - functional aid for pet care.
Studio of Furniture and Interior Design / Roman Vrtiška, Vladimír Žák, as. Petr Hák: VOSKLE - cooperation of the studio with Rückl Glass Factory - presentation of the brand of the glass manufacturer in a new way. Not a product created, but a story that is written into the glass. The final glass objects are exhibited.
Studio of Product Design / Michal Froněk, Jan Němeček, asst. Michal Malášek: A set of glassware for the Květná 1794 glassworks, issues of textile recycling in cooperation with Diakonie Broumov // final project: Folding furniture – practical assignment with an emphasis on prototype realization.
Studio of Fine Arts I (Sculpture) / Amálie Bulandrová, Kateřina Konvalinová, Dominik Lang: Země Za / Afterland – participation in building the garden of the Pardubice City Gallery, including several site-specific objects and performances by the authors. // final exam: open assignment, some works build upon fieldwork for GAMPA.
Studio of Fine Arts II (Painting) / Lenka Vitkova, as. Denisa Bytelová: Body Awarness - dealing with the body and its narration // final project: free assignment.
Studio of Fine Arts III (Intermedia Art) / Žil Vostalová, as. Lucie Rosenfeldová: No Limits, All Dreams - a reaction to technological systems of control and the algorithms generated by them that influence human perception, thinking and dreaming.
Studio of Fine Arts IV (Photography) / Jiří Thýn, asst. Václav Kopecký: The theme follows the book by James Bridle – Ways of Being: Beyond Human Intelligence – semester project not exhibited // final exam: open assignment.
Visiting Artist Studio / Sláva Sobotovičová, Basim Magdy (visiting artist): CIRCLE AROUND THE CHAIRS IN A LOCKED ROOM. Multimedia art practices // final project: free assignment
Studio of Glass / Rony Plesl, asst. Klára Horáčková: Style. A theoretical analysis of a selected quality design, glass or other brands and a follow-up design based on the style and tradition of the brand. // final project: style. Style-forming elements in one's own work that can be built upon in the future.
Studio of Ceramics and Porcelain / Milan Pekař, asst. Tereza Sluková: Only the final project will be exhibited: DREAM – strategies through which artistic works articulate and share subjective experience. Dreaming and dreams were used as a means of exploration in a wide field of meanings: from childhood dreams of future careers, to dreams as the goals of our longing, to dreams as hallucinations and projections of the future.
Studio of Concept – Object – Meaning (K.O.V.) / Tadeáš Podracký, asst. Kateřina Jirsová: FOOD: New Horizons – challenging common ways of thinking about food and its role in our lives. Food as a medium that reflects our cultural, social, and technological shifts. Through material exploration of metal objects and performative interventions, the students sought new horizons in understanding and representing food. // final porject: FOOD: New Horizons: analysis and interpretation of performative aspects of eating culture, examining the interaction between the body and the object in the context of everyday practice. The assignment aims to problematize conventional understandings of cultural practices related to food through theoretical research and material exploration, with a primary focus on metal objects in the realization.
Studio of Fashion Design / Miroslav Sabo, asst. Tereza Rozálie Kladošová: Eternity of the present - inspiration from the Lobkowicz collections, the theme is a continuation of the winter semester assignment. The outcome is a ready-to-wear / demi-couture collection of three models. The work builds on an already completed model from the winter semester and develops it into a complete collection.
Studio of Fashion and Footwear Design / Simona Rybáková, asst. Michaela Vrátníková: Upcycling Statement: Rethinking Textile Waste – collaboration with Diakonie Broumov, a social cooperative that established its own sorting facility and operation for processing used textiles. The studio had the opportunity to reuse used garments and textiles, primarily denim, leather, and fur. Collections were created based on upcycling principles, meaning the redesign of used and discarded clothes and materials into garments of high quality, craftsmanship, and aesthetic value. The theoretical dimensions of the topic form an important part of the project, aiming to contribute to a two-way education of the public on sustainability, the lifecycle of garments and materials, and possibilities for their further processing from the perspective of a professionalizing young generation of designers. // final project: Upcycling Statement: Rethinking Textile Waste.
Studio of Textile Design / Linda Kaplanová, asst. Martin Pondělíček: Flags – flags mapping the journey of selected crops to our table. They visually communicate critical information about water consumption, environmental impact, and indicate the distances food is transported. The assignment was developed as part of the Water Parliaments project, led by Eva Franch i Gilabert and the TAKK studio. The work is exhibited at the Venice Architecture Biennale as part of the Catalan pavilion. // final project: A collaborative large-format tapestry for public space – inspired by the 140th anniversary of UMPRUM and a look back at the roots of the Textile Studio.
Studio of Illustration and Graphics / Juraj Horváth, asst. Michaela Kukovičová: 1) Illustrations for a literary magazine (together with the Studio of Type Design and Typography) 2) Weekly cartoon reports 3) Bookpeople - a project for the children's book fair in Bologna 4) Printing from a single matrix (with guest Palo Čejka) // Final Project: illustrated book using text.
Studio of Type Design and Typography / Filip Kraus, Jan Čumlivski: Redesign of printed periodicals A2, Souvislosti, and Host – in collaboration with the Studio of Illustration and Graphics and the editorial teams of three cultural magazines, proposals for new graphic layouts of these important titles were created. // final exam: The boundaries of literary text – extending beyond the field of graphic design – creation of an original text.
Studio of Graphic Design and Visual Communications / Zuzana Lednická, asst. Richard Jaroš: Thinking through Images – working with any archive. The output format is flexible: book, video, web. // final project: Thinking in Text – use key word(s), a continuous text between 1000 and 1800 characters, and a diagram / a series of three A2 posters representing the semester project / representation of the semester project.
Studio of Animation and Film / Michaela Režová, Jan Drozda, asst. Jakub Zich, asst. Zuzana Bukovinská: Original projects, animated reports & video clips.
Studio of Graphic Design and New Media / Petr Babák, asst. Lukáš Kijonka, asst. Martin Ponec: Criticism in graphic design. The presentation of the semester assignments will include a broadcast of the studio's Radio202, which in a short time has become a platform for different styles, school collaboration and live beats. R202 in action! // final project: presentation of semester research using various forms.
Studio of Photography II / Alena Kotzmannová, asst. Karin Zadrick, asst. Vojtěch Votýpka: Photography as Original / Deterritorialization of the Studio – short-term assignments related to specific themes and environments. Students chose their assignments through discussion. Exhibited will be original themes such as Shop Windows, Decay, Photography, Elegance, Paradise. Each student’s output is always one photograph or an object/installation working with photography. Workshop results – e.g., Oil Printing with a crossover into contemporary photographic media. // final project: STILL LIFE – FREE INSPIRATION – collaboration with Elle Decoration.
Studio of Design and Digital Technologies / Jan Netušil, asst. Jiří Hölzel: Interactive projection to the Prague Planetarium. // final project: micro / macro cosmos. Exploration of the given theme and especially the specific technology of the LED House in the newly renovated building of the Planetarium Prague.
Visual Arts: Fun after work - exploring the relationship between work and recreation through installation, animation and film.
