Saloun's Villa

Saloun's Villa, located in a quiet area of Vinohrady, is a former studio of the Czech sculptor Ladislav Saloun (1870-1946), a leading figure of Czech Art Nouveau symbolism and the author of the famous Jan Hus memorial in the Old Town Square finished in 1915. Saloun's Villa is a unique gem of Art Nouveau architecture, which was built between 1908 and 1910 and finished in 1911. Saloun decided to build his new studio after his project won the competition to create a new Jan Hus statue in the Old Town Square because his older studio located in the area of Wenceslas Square simply was not big enough for such a large statue. Saloun's Villa quickly became popular as a meeting point for Czech artists such as the sculptor Frantisek Bilek, the poet Otokar Brezina, the painter Alfons Mucha, the singer Ema Destinova, the composer and conductor Jan Kubelik and the print maker and writer Josef Vachal, who in his memoirs mentions the occult séances which took place in the cellar of the villa. The villa became a protected cultural monument in 1958 but was in an increasingly run-down state until 2006 when a complete renovation started, which was finished a year later. The villa is now used as teaching space for guest professors of the AVU (The Academy of Fine Arts).

Photos: Dolce Vita 

Slovenská 4/2499, Praha 10 Vinohrady