Diploma Thesis Exhibition Awards Five Projects from the FA

The competition is organized annually by the Czech Chamber of Architects to recognize exceptional diploma projects and to raise awareness of themes that the emerging generation of architects considers important. The entries were evaluated by a professional jury chaired by architect Jana Janďourková Medlíková (atakarchitekti). Other members included landscape architect Štěpánka Endrle (L&SCAPE), architects Tomáš Hanus (BYRÓ) and Nikoleta Slováková (Petr Hájek Architekti), and publicist Matěj Šišolák.

According to the jury chairwoman, 114 graduates from Czech architectural schools submitted their successfully defended final projects this year. During the evaluation, the jury emphasized the complexity of the solutions, the quality of the architectural and urban design, technical execution, graphic presentation, and the social and environmental relevance of the chosen themes. Sustainability, recycling, affordable housing, community integration, and the relationship between the city and the landscape were the dominant topics. The chairwoman noted that the awardees demonstrated professional confidence and that their projects confirm that Czech schools are preparing architects to respond to contemporary societal and environmental challenges.

The jury awarded third place to Valentýna Zítková for her project Village Settles by Village. Under the guidance of Tomáš Zmek, Jonáš Krýzl, and Jan Novotný, she developed a proposal for coordinated cooperation between multiple municipalities to help develop the potential of each. The jury praised the work for its sensitive grasp of the contemporary Czech village, its complex analytical part, and a design approach based on smaller interventions that react naturally to the local context. They also highlighted the high-quality graphic presentation and the project's mature, authentic character.

Matěj Šépka received an honorable mention for his project Church and Chimney. Supervised by Michal Juha, he focused on adapting a defunct boiler house in the Řepy housing estate in Prague into a community and spiritual center, responding to the lack of gathering places and public sacred spaces. The jury appreciated how the author worked with the existing structure’s dominant features, using the original chimney as a church tower. They described the monumental wooden roof design as a contemporary answer to traditional temple spaces, creating an inspiring story of finding new uses for obsolete buildings.

The Cegra Special Prize was awarded to Marie Hojná for her Agricultural Education Center, led by Michal Kuzemenský and Slavomír Peterka. The design transforms the area between Prague’s Libeň and Troja into a site that addresses modern urban challenges—such as water retention, biodiversity, and soil regeneration—while combining residential functions with rational agricultural use. The jury praised the project's broad scope, the clear order of the master plan, and the noble design of the utilitarian buildings, which create a pleasant atmosphere for diverse users.

The Heluz Prize was awarded to Štěpán Mareš for his work Trutnov – Industrial Complex in the City Center, supervised by Vojtěch Sosna at the FA CTU in Prague. The project deals with the conversion of industrial buildings into housing, bringing a new identity and quality of life to the city without expanding into the landscape. The evaluation committee lauded the project as a practical strategy for brownfield transformation that addresses the shortage of affordable housing and the problems of suburbanization through a modular block system and material rationality.

For the fourth time, graduates also competed for the Kaplicky Internship Award. The winner was Vít Veselý with his project Under the Canopies, led by Dalibor Hlaváček and Michal Čeněk. The proposed pool and wellness complex on the outskirts of Bílina uses its striking form to attract tourists expected after the reclamation of local surface mines. As part of his prize, Vít will head to Tokyo for a three-month paid internship at the Kengo Kuma & Associates studio. All submitted projects, photographs, and a recording of the ceremony are available on the competition website.