The role of GEMA ART GROUP a. s. as a main contractor for building and restoration work for the republic-wide project “Ten Stars”
The project “10 stars – Revitalization of Jewish monuments in the Czech Republic” comprises 13 different monuments in ten locations: Plzeň, Brandýs nad Labem, Březnice near Příbram, Jičín, Krnov, Mikulov, Nová Cerekev, Úštěk near Litoměřice, Polná nad Jihlavku and Boskovice. All these locations have old synagogues, houses of rabbis and cantors and Jewish schools, mostly originating from the 18th and 19th centuries. Two exceptions are the synagogue in Mikulov, built in the 16th century and the synagogue in Polná, which dates back to the 17th century. The aim of the project is to create a network of educational and cultural centres focused on Judaism.
The pilot for the project, which started in 2006, focused on Jewish monuments as tourist attractions. The project itself was launched soon after GEMA ART GROUP a. s. won the tender for the building and restoration work. It is expected that the building work will be completed by October 2013.
All the Jewish monuments involved in the project served their original purpose until the Nazi occupation during World War II. After the war the buildings were mostly utilized for storage and left to deteriorate. The Velvet Revolution of November 1989 brought about changes, which resulted in the return of the properties to the Jewish community and their partial reconstruction. Some now have permanent exhibitions on Judaism related subjects. The project “10 stars” aims to carry out further reconstructions under the management of GEMA ART GROUP a. s. involving stonemasonry, roofing, joinery, carpentry, plumbing and other trades. Many building have dampness problems and require damp-proofing. Most need repairs to exterior and interior plasterwork, which will be carried out in accordance with the surveys of the original colour schemes. Restoration work included many elements specific to the interior of a Jewish synagogue, such as the bima (elevated pulpit), Aron ha-Kodesh (shrine for the Tora), the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments, the wooden pews, the kijor (ritual stone or ceramic lavabo) and the mikvah (ritual bath). The renovated premises will be suitable for exhibitions and other cultural events and will have all the necessary facilities for visitors. All the exterior and interior work will be carried out by an expert workforce after consultations with the staff of the National Heritage Institute.
After the reconstruction work is completed the premises of these Jewish monuments will be utilized for expositions about the history of Jewish literature and education, important Jewish inventors and entrepreneurs, Jewish architecture as well subjects such as anti-Semitism and many others. The buildings will also be suitable venues for lectures, concerts, literary events, theatre performances and film screenings. The extensive and ambitious “10 stars” project is regarded by GEMA ART GROUP a. s. as its flagship commission both for the present time and for the foreseeable future.
More information about the individual Jewish monuments can be found at:
http://www.gemaart.cz/restaurovani/aktualni-projekty
