Czech architects: Josef Schulz as a big name of Czech neo-Renaissance
An architect, educator, designer and restorer in one
Josef Schulz signed his name under these fantastic buildings as the main architect designer and, in the case of the National Theater, as the restorer of the burnt building, or a continuer in the construction of the Rudolfinum. He proved himself to be successful not only in the field of architecture, but he also entered the world of design. He designed the goldsmith's and haberdasher's goods that his pupils manufactured. Not only was he an honorary professor at the Czech Technical University in Prague, he was also an honorary member of the Royal Czech Academy of the Emperor Franz Joseph I.
A National monument for Bohemia
This is how Josef Schulz's core work, bearing Viennese and Parisian elements, could be described. The National Museum, dominating the Wenceslas Square, has a representative air, for all passers-by to admire. His sense of historicism was spiked with urban context and underlined with precision. This "Art Temple" is dominated by luxurious sculptural and stucco decorations, in which Bohuslav Schnirch and another artist colleague, Antonín Barvit, were involved.
It is the largest museum institution in the country built in 1891 with an interesting detail – seventy-two names of Czech history inscribed in golden letters into the facade under the windows.
Other work comparable in size
No less important a construction in his life was the luxurious building of the Museum of Applied Arts in the vicinity of the Rudolfinum. He designed it in the spirit of the Parisian Renaissance between 1897 and 1901 and it was characterized by a strict expediency.
Restoration work
Dozens of buildings in Prague carry signs of his restoration interventions, such as the sgraffito facade of the Schwarzenberg Palace, the magnificent reconstruction of the Valdštejn Château Stránov near Mladá Boleslav, the restoration of the facade of the luxurious chateau in Horšovský Týn, the modification of the late Renaissance chateau in Vrchlabí.
In addition to all of this, he made time to write professional articles that were published in both Czech and German periodicals.
This name shall not be forgotten. His creative potential is indelibly embedded in his architectural legacy for future generations.
