The Academy of Fine Arts in Prague (; AVU) is an art college in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

. Founded in 1799, it is the oldest art college in the country. The school offers twelve

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

programs and one

doctoral A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

program.

History

Starting in the early 18th century, a series of organizations were formed in

with an interest in promoting

art Art is a diverse range of cultural activity centered around ''works'' utilizing creative or imaginative talents, which are expected to evoke a worthwhile experience, generally through an expression of emotional power, conceptual ideas, tec ...

and

education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

. Thanks in part to their efforts, the Academy of Fine Arts was founded by Imperial Decree on 10 September 1799. Joseph Bergler the Younger was the first director."After Joseph Bergler (1753-1829)", The Royal Collection Trust
/ref> It began with instruction in

drawing Drawing is a Visual arts, visual art that uses an instrument to mark paper or another two-dimensional surface, or a digital representation of such. Traditionally, the instruments used to make a drawing include pencils, crayons, and ink pens, some ...

. The academy was gradually expanded to include programs in

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...

painting Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...

printmaking Printmaking is the process of creating work of art, artworks by printing, normally on paper, but also on fabric, wood, metal, and other surfaces. "Traditional printmaking" normally covers only the process of creating prints using a hand proces ...

, and

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

, among others. In 1990 drastic reforms were undertaken by rector

Milan Knížák Milan Knížák (; born 19 April 1940) is a Czech performance artist, sculptor, noise musician, installation artist, political dissident, graphic artist, art theorist and pedagogue of art associated with Fluxus. Biography Early life Milan ...

to reorganize the concept and internal structure of the school. By 1991 new media related study programs including

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

and

computer animation Computer animation is the process used for digitally generating Film, moving images. The more general term computer-generated imagery (CGI) encompasses both still images and moving images, while computer animation refers to moving images. Virtu ...

were added.

Today

Today, the academy is an accredited university offering an education in modern and historic art. As an exclusively graduate school there are no student accommodation or on-campus eating facilities. International programs are offered in Czech, with a limited number of classes offered in English.

Departments

Current departments include: * Architecture * Art in Context (English program) * Drawing * Figural Sculpture and Medal * Intermedia * New Media * Printmaking * Painting * Sculpture Restoration

Notable alumni

References

{{authority control Art schools in the Czech Republic 1799 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1799 establishments in the Habsburg monarchy 18th-century establishments in Bohemia Educational institutions established in 1799 Educational institutions in Prague