Heads and Hands in Action: Showcasing 100 Years of Applied Arts Education from Brno... in Brno

The history of the ŠUŘKA (Škola uměleckých řemesel), Brno's own School of Applied Arts, fits well within both narratives – on one hand, its story highlights the professionalisation of arts and crafts training, drawing on traditional practices such as drawing, weaving, and ceramics. On the other hand, it illustrates the emergence of entirely new disciplines, from the first graphic design departments to fields that could only develop alongside a growing mass market, such as window display – an offshoot of stage design, for example. By no means does the exhibition claim that the ŠUŘKA represents a "first" in this spectrum of innovations, neither internationally nor in former Czechoslovakia, where it was founded in 1924 as a school offering a comprehensive education in the applied arts. This history, from the school's early development to today, is the focus of an exhibition at Brno's House of Arts now. The school's core aim, to provide a modern alternative to institutions such as the Kunstgewerbeschule in Vienna or Prague's UMPRUM, remains central: more specifically, the exhibition's goal, tied in with a large-scale research project led by Lada Hubatová-Vacková, is to nuance perceptions of Brno as a "periphery" to Prague and Vienna. And certainly, the exhibition succeeds in showing that the ŠUŘKA managed well in mediating local and international developments in the applied arts while establishing a position far from peripheral or secondary compared to its larger neighbours.

Starting on the ground floor with a video installation and a list of names alongside lettering exercises for those eager to try typography themselves, the exhibition begins with an overview of teachers and students still active in Brno today. On the gallery's first floor, the exhibition then guides visitors through the school's development in chronological order, while also introducing various media and focal points. Beginning with painting, portrait busts, and drawing exercises of folk ornament and dress, the school's regional origins are depicted in the first room, which includes several works by František Süsser and a large-scale projection of drawing classes focused on ornament.  

One particularly striking aspect of the exhibition is that, while keeping with the theme of "heads and hands" working in together, it manages to span a hundred years of the school's history in a manner that accommodates the various media taught there, without overwhelming visitors. This is achieved by showcasing different media at different points in time. The first floor opens with painting, ornamental drawings and sculpture in the first room, the exhibition then moves into the next space, the late 1920s, which focuses on ceramics and typographic design, as well as textiles such as weaving, embroidery, knitting, and crocheting. Each medium has its own dedicated corner, making the different crafts departments easily distinguishable, yet close enough to demonstrate the range of subjects taught at the school since its inception. From small-scale student projects, like gloves and vases, to larger ceramic works, the diverse training opportunities open to girls and boys alike are effectively illustrated with a careful selection of objects that require minimal wall text. This allows visitors to browse without the necessity to read huge amounts of text – although, ample information is provided.

The exhibition architecture guides the visitor experience throughout, ensuring that one's attention remains in the room – not an easy task considering that the time span and multiple departments of the ŠUŘKA's development. Refreshingly, these interventions are not gimmicky but make sense in line with the rooms they are installed in – for example, in the "photography room," which introduces the photography department with particular reference to the work of Hugo Táborský, a screen with a changing slideshow allows the curators to display a much wider range of photographs than would otherwise be possible. Paired with prints on the wall, the room offers an overview and enables a detailed study of individual works  at the same time. Táborský's fabric studies are particularly commendable in this context, not least because they effortlessly connect to other departments at the school. Adding to the sense that Brno was, indeed, an important location  for modernist experimentation is the record of a lecture by the surrealist André Breton, which he held during a visit to Brno in April 1935. Far from being removed, the dynamic between strong technical training and the students and teachers' interest in expanding their practice through international connections comes to the fore here particularly well.

The following room abruptly departs from allusions to avant-garde experimentation, concentrating on the school's development during the protectorate and the Stalinist period. A striking feature in the large exhibition space is a piece of scaffolding covering an entire wall, inviting visitors to climb up (with safety features provided) to view portraits of Stalin and Lenin, among other works from the early 1950s, up close. Additional elements in the room include a focus on folk culture, to which the school's ties were reinforced during socialism. The contrast of works in the aforementioned rooms clearly demonstrates the range of art produced by the school – and, in doing so, forges a local history of art and design in all its diversity. 

Considering the overview provided in the exhibition, the accompanying publication also plays a vital role beyond simply acting as a catalogue; it offers detailed insights into the themes explored, highlighting the depth of research that went into the preparation of the show. While the exhibition and the publication complement each other, it should be noted that the exhibition at times relies heavily on supplementary information, too. For instance, in the room dedicated to the period between the late 1930s and early 1950s, there is mention of the shift in the school's focus on different media under National Socialism. However, the works on display differ from the textiles mentioned, creating a slight discrepancy between what is described and what is exhibited. Consulting the catalogue clarifies this, but also raises the question of how far the publication should act as a necessary guide to the exhibition.

Moving to the 1970s and beyond, it becomes clear that narrating history becomes more difficult the more recent it is. This affects the flow of the exhibition – while, until the 1960s, narratives are closely connected through carefully chosen objects and an understanding of how the school developed within its specific era, later periods, leading up to 2024, focus more on objects, with historical details fading into the background, at least in written form. For instance, Jan Rajlich's posters about Palestine from the late 1970s not only depict the broader sociopolitical atmosphere of that time but also subtly evoke contemporary events. This is especially effective because the selected works are strikingly simple, showcasing the lasting skill of graphic design produced in Brno.

At this point, it is worth noting that, aside from the narrative and presentation, the exhibition features a selection of interesting artworks, making it worth visiting. At the beginning of the display, this mainly comprises ceramics and textile work, notably a tapestry designed by Süsser, realised in the textile class with one of the students, Olga Studničková, who features in the centre. In the later rooms, one of the most striking pieces is Jana Zlámalová's Harvest (1963), a straw-based depiction of an agrarian scene. There are also a range of impressive stage design models and, enclosed in a small theatre, a collection of puppets for popular theatre performances. The variety of materials alone is engaging, and while we learn little about individual students, especially their artworks, they clearly testify to the school's successful training. In other words, the exhibition truly succeeds in providing an overview that is both widely accessible, interesting, and fun. By the Head and by the Hands is a thoroughly enjoyable exhibition that not only allows visitors to learn about art education in Brno but also to explore different aspects of the applied arts, from drawing to photography, stage design, window display, and textiles. Focusing on a close narrative of the school, the exhibition succeeds in presenting a nuanced image that avoids making grand claims about the school's position in the wider landscape of applied arts institutions. Yet, by tracing developments so thoroughly and supporting claims with an excellent selection of artworks (many from the Moravian Gallery), it convincingly shows how the ŠUŘKA managed to navigate between international trends and local concerns, ultimately constructing a story definitely worth telling – and visiting.

L. Hubatová-Vacková (Ed.), 2025. By the Head and by the Hands. The School of Arts and Crafts in Brno 1924–2024. Prague: UMPRUM.

The exhibition can still be visited until the 8th of March 2026 and is accompanied by a comprehensive programme!

This text was originally published in Czech in the December 2025 issue of Art Antiques magazine. You can read it here!