Žabovřesky was long without its own school building, and local children attended school in neighbouring Komín. In 1888, an elementary school for boys and girls was established at Horova Street 77 (today the building serves as a home for the elderly). In response to the rapid development of upper Žabovřesky in the early 20th century, the municipal council decided to build a second school on today’s Králová Street. The wing facing Šeránkova Street was built in 1907–1908 by the local master builder Bartoloměj Novák according to plans by Tomáš Němeček, whose other projects include the St. Wenceslas Chapel on Burianovo náměstí. Immediately after the start of the 1908/1909 school year, planning began for the wings on Králova and Sirotkova Street, which were apparently completed in 1911. This addition was designed by Vladimír Fischer, a specialist in school buildings and one of the most important architects in Brno at the time, and construction was carried out by the firm of František Křivý. The resulting complex housed both an elementary school and a girls’ and boys’ middle school, along with a gymnasium and chapel.
Němeček’s northern wing has three floors and a main entrance inside a massive portal inscribed with the date 1907. The facades are covered with relatively flat geometric Art Nouveau decoration, complemented by stucco reliefs of Neo-Classical vases with garlands. Fischer’s addition is architecturally more substantial and exemplifies the architect’s experience and ability. Working on a relatively small area predetermined by the street layout, he built two wings with symmetrically conceived facades. On the side facing Králova Street are two avant-corps with gables on top; the same design, though with just one central avant-corps, is repeated on Sirotkova Street. The central part of the longest wing has a slightly higher hip roof with a pair of small towers topped by finials. The facade is also segmented differently than Němeček’s wing. It is characterized by a more understated approach that, though influenced by Art Nouveau décor, was eclectic in its own way. During the Second World War, the school was seized by the occupation administration, and later it housed a Red Army field hospital. Instruction was reinitiated immediately after the end of the war. Soon after, the school’s growing needs necessitated construction of an addition to the wing on Sirotkova Street. In 2018, a new multi-purpose gymnasium was added in the courtyard according to plans by the Gerö architecture studio. More recently, a modern addition for the school’s specialized classrooms and workshops, designed by Atelier 99, was built next to Němeček’s wing on Šeránkova Street.
Matěj Kruntorád
