A single inspiration, two paths ÚĽUV 1945 – 1989

ÚĽUV was founded in 1945 in Prague; in December it opened branches in Bratislava and Brno, following in 1947 by Uherské Hradiště. The functioning of the institution was defined by the joint Act no. 100/1945, and so the same rules applied to all. However, the situation at the end of the Second World War was different for both countries, and the economic backgrounds differed greatly. Slovakia was primarily an agricultural country, whereas industrialisation had impacted Bohemia – and to some extent Moravia – more significantly.

In post-war Slovakia, there was great admiration for folk culture, which was still an authentic part of the rural environment in the 1950s. However, Slovakia had a handicap as a result of the lack of production facilities and the slower growth of industry. Differing conditions at the time of the institution’s foundation thus influenced later practices. Whereas in the Czech lands, ÚĽUV focused mainly on industrial production, or small-scale production in numerous workshops, in Slovakia production was in the hands of individuals, and so products were made by craftsmen in different areas of Slovakia. The fusion with the Association of Czechoslovak Artwork and later with the publishing-house Družstevná práca also had an impact on the direction taken by production, resulting in Czech ÚĽUV taking over not only their assets, but also certain objectives. The flagships of the Czech centre became the Krásna izba shops, which were linked to the heritage of the functionalism of the First Czechoslovak Republic. This line of modernisation became more apparent in Bohemian and Moravian production, whereas in Slovakia it remained more conservative. The production of the Czech and Slovak ÚĽUV was naturally influenced by important artistic personalities. Many of them even left their mark over several decades, and their products became cult. Thanks to research into archive materials, a study of the period press and an active search for people who remember those times, we were able to identify many items which hitherto had been listed as being by an unknown artist. Many of these are being exhibited for the first time. The concept of the exhibition presents the institution as an innovative post-war Czechoslovak project which brought new ideas and impulses into the local environment. It points to interesting connections between the effort to maintain the folk tradition while also trying to modernise it. The ÚĽUV/Krásna izba brand entered th history of design in Czechoslovakia as a clear signal of artistic and craft quality.

Venue: ÚĽUV Gallery, Obchodná 64, Bratislava
Exhibition dates: 5. 12. 2025 – 29. 5. 2026
Curator: Zuzana Dedík Šidlíková
Graphic designer/architect: Janka a Palo Bálik
Works from the following collections: Museum of Folk Art Production Stupava (MĽUV), Moravian Museum Brno (MZM), Slovak Museum of Design (SMD), East Slovak Museum Košice (VM), private collections
Filmy: Slovak Film Institute

The artists’ profiles are based on texts by the authors of the publication “ÚĽUV 1945 – 1989. Craft with a brand.”