Saturday, January 7, 2012

December 30~CUBISM and Other architectural delights

Just opposite the Café Imperial is Legiobanka (24 Na Porici Street).
Built in 1924 by highly original architect Josef Gocar, it is an odd mix of cylindrical shapes and folk art sculpture, the epitome of the new Rondo-Cubism. Today the building still houses a bank and, inside, the original 1920s decor looks like it could be a silent film set.



post WWI statuary












The House of The Black Madonna, another Gocar masterpiece, houses the excellent
Museum of Cubism and the delightful Grand Cafe Orient


The Black Madonna


stairwell


Interior of the Cafe


Irish coffee, the perfect warm drink after sightseeing.



SGRAFFITO~designs etched into a buildings stucco exterior








The Dancing House
This building is an example of deconstructivist architecture, with an unusual shape. It reflects a woman and man (Ginger Rogers and Fred Astair) dancing together.



This building, a Brutalist mass covered in glass that has been likened to a melting ice cube, was originally used as an offshoot of the august, neo-Renaissance National Theater. Completed in 1983, it is perceived by some to be one of Prague’s dreariest and most dissonant examples of Communist-era architecture.


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