The Academy of Fine Arts is one of the first buildings you can see when you come to Výstaviště. It is located on the left side of the main entrance and the original sculptures from the Charles Bridge, which are being restored here, are kept inside. The building is not open to the public, though the Academy organises an open house on one day of the year.

History and architecture

The Academy building is a single-storey Neo-Renaissance building with several wings. Its main façade facing the central area of Výstaviště was decorated with sgraffito decorations and sculptures by František Hergessel. At the end of the exhibition, the building was rented by Josef Hlávka in 1883 for the needs of the Academy. After the completion of the new school building, the pavilion was adapted for the Modern Gallery of the Kingdom of Bohemia according to a design by Jan Kotěra from 1904. During the German occupation, the building was used by the Wehrmacht for storage and at the end of the war during the Prague Uprising in May 1945, it was occupied for the Academy by a revolutionary group of students. Since then, the teaching of sculpture, graphics and subsequently also the newly-established field of Art Restoration has taken place here.

The Academy of Fine Arts has been located in the building ever since 1892, and permanently since 1945.

The building underwent a costly renovation and modernisation in the early 21st century.