Josef Gočár (13 March 1880 in

Semín Semín is a municipality and village in Pardubice District Pardubice District ( cs, okres Pardubice) is a district (''okres'') within the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the city of Pardubice. Overview Pardubice District i ...

– 10 September 1945 in

Jičín Jičín (; german: Jitschin or ''Gitschin'') is a town in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 16,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument reservation. T ...

) was a Czech architect. It was one of the founders of modern architecture in

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. Th ...

Life

Josef Gočár received his early instruction at the State Technical School in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

. At the age of 23 he went to study under Jan Kotěra at the School of Applied Arts in Prague (UPŠ). For two years afterward, 1906–1908, Gočár was employed by Kotěra's studio. At that time he decided to join the

Mánes Union of Fine Arts The Mánes Association of Fine Artists ( or ''S.V.U.''; commonly abbreviated as ''Manes'') was an artists' association and exhibition society founded in 1887 in Prague and named after painter Josef Mánes. The Manes was significant for its inte ...

, but left it in 1911 to join the Cubist Group of Visual Artists. Gočár joined Pavel Janák, Josef Chochol and Odolen Grégr in founding the Prague Art Workshops in 1912. In 1924, following the death of Kotěra, Gočár became a professor at the Prague Academy of Fine Arts. After his involvement in cubism, Gočár turned to "national"

Czech Rondocubism Czech Art Deco, Legiobank style, National style, National decorativeness, Curved Cubism, Rondocubism or Third Cubist style is a series of terms used to describe the characteristic style of architecture and applied arts, which existed mainly during ...

style in the early 1920s. Later on he adopted the Functionalist approach to architecture. Among his greatest accomplishments is the Czechoslovak Pavilion for the 1925

Exposition internationale des arts décoratifs et industriels modernes The International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts (french: Exposition internationale des arts décoratifs et industriels modernes) was a World's fair held in Paris, France, from April to October 1925. It was designed by the Fren ...

in Paris. He was awarded the Grand Prize for that design. In 1926 Gočár was awarded the Ordre de la

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon B ...

Works

Wenke Department Store Wenke is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Ad Wenke (1898–1961), American footballer and state supreme court justice *Klaus Wenke (1916–1944), German naval officer in WW2 Other Wenke is an alternative spelling of the Norweg ...

Jaroměř Jaroměř (; german: Jermer) is a town in Náchod District in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 12,000 inhabitants. It is known for the Josefov Fortress. Josefov is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban ...

, (1909–1911) *

House of the Black Madonna The House of the Black Madonna ( Czech: ''U Černé Matky Boží'') is a cubist building in the Old Town of Prague, Czech Republic. It was designed by Josef Gočár. The first floor houses a café, while the four upper floors are used by the Museu ...

, Prague's Old Town (1911–1912) *

Bauer villa Bauer is a German language, German surname meaning "peasant" or "farmer". For notable people sharing the surname, see Bauer (surname). Bauer may also refer to: Education and literature * Bauer's Lexicon, a dictionary of Biblical Greek * Bauer ...

Libodřice Libodřice is a municipality and village in Kolín District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 400 inhabitants. Geography Libodřice is located about west of Kolín and east of Prague. It lies in the Upper S� ...

, (1912–1913) * Remodeling of the head office of Anglo-Czechoslovak Bank in Prague and new branch buildings in

Hradec Králové Hradec Králové (; german: Königgrätz) is a city of the Czech Republic. It has about 91,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Hradec Králové Region. The historic centre of Hradec Králové is well preserved and is protected by law as a ...

Ostrava Ostrava (; pl, Ostrawa; german: Ostrau ) is a city in the north-east of the Czech Republic, and the capital of the Moravian-Silesian Region. It has about 280,000 inhabitants. It lies from the border with Poland, at the confluences of four ri ...

and

Pardubice Pardubice (; german: Pardubitz) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 89,000 inhabitants. It is the capital city of the Pardubice Region and lies on the Elbe River. The historic centre is well preserved and is protected as an urban monume ...

* Dům Zemědělské osvěty, Vinohrady, Prague, 1924–1926 * Saint Wenceslas Church, Vršovice, Prague, 1929–1930 * A 10-year period of

town planning Urban planning, also known as town planning, city planning, regional planning, or rural planning, is a technical and political process that is focused on the development and design of land use and the built environment, including air, water, ...

and

building design Building design refers to the broadly based architectural, engineering and technical applications to the design of buildings. All building projects require the services of a building designer, typically a licensed architect. Smaller, less complica ...

for

where a large street still bears his name today.

Gallery

Svaty Vaclav Vrsovice.jpg, Saint Wenceslas church, Vršovice, Prague, 1929–1930. Prague Gocar rondokubismus.jpg, Building of Legiobanka in Prague, with architectural sculpture by Otto Gutfreund and Jan Štursa. Dům U černé Matky Boží 02.JPG,

, Prague. Hradec Králové - Gymnázium J. K. Tyla - Průčelí.jpg, Gymnasium, Hradec Králové. Josef Gočár Winternitz Mills Pardubice 1911.JPG, Winternitz Mills, Pardubice. Bauerova vila - Libodřice 3.JPG, Bauer villa, Libodřice. Palác Fénix 02.JPG, Fénix Palace (Strojexport), Prague, Wenceslas Square. Muzeum 1.jpg, Museum building (originally store house) in Jaroměř

External links

Biography (in English)Biography (in Czech)List of works (in Czech)Photographs of his works (text in Czech)
1880 births 1945 deaths People from Pardubice District Czech architects Cubist architects Academic staff of the Academy of Fine Arts, Prague Burials at Vyšehrad Cemetery {{CzechRepublic-architect-stub

Life

Works

Gallery

See also

External links