Social programme
WELCOME RECEPTION AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ECONOMICS (Wednesday, June 27)
Traditionally, the welcome reception will be held on Wednesday evening from 6pm together with the possibility to register for the conference. This event is included in all registration fee categories.
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SOCIAL EVENT AT RUDOLFINUM (Thursday, June 28)
The main conference social event will take place at Rudolfinum, the seat of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra and Galerie Rudolfinum, a Neo-Renaissance building situated at a beautiful place in the centre of Prague at the bank of Vltava River. This event is included in all registration fee categories.
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The neo-renaissance Rudolfinum building is located on a site called Rejdiště. In 1873 this site was bought by the Czech Insurance Company (Česká spořitelna), with the goal to build there a House of Artists as part of the celebrations of the fiftieth anniversary of its founding. Crown prince Rudolf became the patron of the project and the building was named after him. Well known Prague architects Ignác Ullmann, Antonín Barvitius, J. Zítek, J. Schulz a F. Beníšek, as well as Viennese architects A. Wieleman, O. Thienemann, G. Niemann, V. Lunche a Köchlin were invited to enter their bids into the project competition. The winners - J. Schulz and J. Zítek - presented the first plans in the year 1875. The facade is an analogy of the fire destroyed Semper Opera in Dresden (1838-41). The building was finished in the year 1881, the sculptures in the attic gable come from 1884 and during the same year the concert hall and the surrounding spaces were furnished.
The inauguration concert was held on February 7, 1885 and in this year also began exhibitions in the adjacent building. The Rudolfinum has been the home of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra since 1946 and is one of the main venues of the Prague Spring International Music Festival held each year in May and June. The building also contains the Galerie Rudolfinum, an art gallery that focuses mainly on contemporary art.
CONFERENCE DINNER AT THE CONVENT OF ST AGNES OF BOHEMIA (Friday, June 29)
- included only in the 'standard registration fee' categories
The conference dinner will be served in the exceptional ambience of the Convent of St Agnes of Bohemia that is currently used for the exhibitions of the National Gallery in Prague. St Agnes of Bohemia Convent (together with neighbouring St Francis Church) is the oldest Gothic building and one of the most famous and significant convents in Bohemia. Now it's the National Culture Heritage of the Czech Republic. It is situated in the Old Town in the centre of Prague.
This event is included only in the standard registration fee categories. It is not included in the discounted registration fee categories!
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The St Agnes Convent was founded by the Premyslid Princess Anežka (Agnes), sister of King Václav I in1231 as the first convent of the Order of Poor Clares north of the Alps. It was the first Gothic building in Prague. The grounds originally had a larger Poor Clare convent and less significant monastery of Friars Minor that was later closed. In its time the convent was an influential spiritual centre in the history of our nation, and was also the Premyslid burial-grounds. However, after the death of its founder, the great era of the convent ended and its importance waned. Shortly after the mid 16th century the Poor Clares were evicted and the building fell into the hands of the Dominicans for roughly seventy years. The Poor Clares were then forcibly returned to the dilapidated convent, but only partial Baroque renovations were made to the devastated building. The convent was one of the first to be closed. It was shut down in January 1782 and thereafter used as workshops, storage facilities and homes for the indigent.
Before its demolition as part of the "Old Town Slum Clearance" it was saved through the efforts of the Union for the Renewal of the Convent of the Blessed Agnes. It was renovated in 1963 to meet the exhibition needs of the National Gallery. Since November 2000, a newly conceived exhibition of mediaeval and early Renaissance art is situated in the authentic environment of the first convent of the Poor Clares in Bohemia, probably founded in 1231 by St Agnes of Bohemia, the daughter of Přemysl Otakar I.
