A Look Back
at Artsemester,
Summer 2025/2026

The Summer Artsemester traditionally marked the end of the academic year, once again presenting a wide range of projects developed across UMPRUM’s studios. The exhibition offered not only the results of several months of individual student work, but also an insight into the ways of thinking, experimentation, and collaboration that the individual studios developed across disciplines throughout the semester. This year’s edition also took place in the new setting of Kasárna Karlín, symbolically marking the beginning of a new, albeit temporary, chapter for the school.

The Studio of Architecture I spent the summer semester exploring new visions for Karlín, the temporary “new home” of a large part of the UMPRUM student community. The semester also included a collaboration with the Tallinn Architecture Biennale.

The Studio of Architecture II continued the activities of the Future Architectures platform with the project Wild Planetary Systems: Design for Protected Areas in Transition. The starting point was the global commitment to protect thirty percent of the world’s land and oceans by 2030, along with the questions this raises about what nature conservation means today and whom it actually serves.

Building on last year’s theme of rivers, The Studio of Architecture III explored the relationship between architecture and plants through the project Terra Botanica. Students approached vegetation not merely as a complementary element, but as an active component of architectural design. Plants became structural, spatial, and environmental elements, opening up questions about new forms of coexistence between architecture and living organisms.

A continuation of The Studio of Architecture IV’s Geology of Architecture project focused on using excavated material generated during the construction of Metro Line D as a fully-fledged building material. Building on the urban proposals developed in the previous semester, students designed residential buildings that integrate this previously unused resource into their construction. The process included experimental testing of building principles through models at various scales. The final exhibition presented not only architectural proposals, but also construction elements made from rammed earth.

The Studio of Industrial Design once again worked on assignments tailored to individual year groups. First-year students created sculptures expressing two opposing emotions, while second-year students explored mechanical principles. The upper-year students, together with external lecturer Tomáš Chludil, focused on the theme of camping. The final studio assignment centered on a seemingly ordinary everyday object that is an integral part of many households – the clothespin.

The Studio of Furniture and Interior Design collaborated with furniture manufacturer LD Seating on the design of a new product that would naturally complement its existing product range. The second major theme focused on interior modifications for Karlín Theatre, where students explored new uses for the existing spaces while preserving their original layouts. The final studio projects included a functional 1:1 scale prototype developed in collaboration with the aforementioned company.

The Studio of Product Design focused on the contemporary designer’s perspective on an seemingly inconspicuous element of the interior – the door handle. In addition to this, students explored ornament and its application in a specific manufacturing technology. The theme was also developed further in the final studio assignment, in which students designed a pedestal for presenting a completed work of art.

The Studio of Fine Art I drew on the themes of “survival” and “getting by,” which naturally connected with the school’s temporary location at Kasárna Karlín. Students worked with various strategies of survival and examined them in relation to the materials of sculptural practice, institutions, and the school’s new academic refuge itself – the Karlín district. The school’s new environment thus became not only a backdrop, but directly one of the themes of the students’ artistic research.

The Studio of Fine Art II worked with an open-ended theme that gave students space for individual approaches and the development of their own artistic research. 

The Studio of Fine Art III explored the theme of Doppelgänger. The final studio projects were developed from an open-ended brief, allowing students to individually interpret the chosen theme within the context of contemporary.

The Studio of Fine Art IV approached the final studio projects as Practicum in Contemporary Art II. Students defined their own personal areas of interest, which they then developed through sketches, material experiments, and the realization of a work of art in any medium.

The Visiting Artist Studio focused on the theme of Symbiotic Settlement, Implantation, and Grafting. The project explored questions of mutual intergrowth, transfer, and coexistence, which students developed through working with their temporary tutors. The final studio projects were then developed around an open-ended theme.

The Studio of Glass prepared the project Behind the Scenes, which will culminate in a presentation at Milan Design Week in spring 2027. The project was inspired by the opera La gazza ladra (The Thieving Magpie) by Gioachino Rossini. This provided an opportunity to explore the sparkle and reflective qualities of glass, as well as the themes of manipulation and deception that lie at the heart of the opera.

The Studio of Ceramics and Porcelain explored, in the final studio project Map and Landscape, how a landscape can reveal traces of human presence while simultaneously influencing our behavior. In this context, the map does not represent a territory through cartography, but rather a way of capturing, articulating, and sharing the relationships between humans and the natural landscape.

The Studio of Concept – Object – Meaning (K.O.V.) focused on technology-based assignments, including, for example, the production of a set of hammered vessels. The final studio project Habit as Material shifted attention to repetitive bodily gestures. Students explored how these habits shape our relationship to the body, the environment, and social norms, creating objects designed to disrupt these automatisms and open up space for new questions.

The leadership of The Studio of Fashion Design left the selection of each student’s sub-theme to a randomly assigned film, which subsequently became the basis for their design collection. A key focus was translating the film’s atmosphere into the resulting garments. The process also involved the use of artificial intelligence tools as a means of developing ideas or as an alternative to costly photographic or video production. The technical component of the project focused on the trench coat, its history, construction, and characteristic details.

The Studio of Fashion and Footwear Design built on the previous project Head: Artpiece – Headpiece, expanding its theme under the title Head to Toe. Students continued to explore the body, silhouette, and volume, focusing primarily on the material and structural solutions of individual pieces. The result is a collection of clothing artefacts that are conceptually connected to the previous projects, forming a cohesive collection.

The Studio of Textile Design continued its long-term project SEJ KONOPÍ. Building on the previous theme Fibre – Medicine – Symbol, it further explored questions of care, traditions, rituals, and contemporary forms of wellbeing. In collaboration with Farma Lapka and Tkalcovna Kubák, students focused on the possibilities of more industrial-scale processing of hemp fibre and sought new ways of using it. The final stage of the project involved a collaboration with the Studio of Photography II.

The Studio of Illustration and Graphics explored the map as a means of storytelling. The project was created for the Bologna Children’s Book Fair. The final studio projects likewise turned their attention to Italy, drawing on memories of the spring plein-air trip to Tuscany, which found expression in drawings, paintings, and journals documenting experiences from the group journey.

The Studio of Type Design and Typography worked with the medium of documentary and its potential within graphic design, typography, and type design. The final studio projects focused on designing the visual identity for the exhibition NHK Collection for Lidice, organized by the Lidice Collection of Art

The Studio of Graphic Design and Visual Communication focused during the semester on the project Monte di Luce, whose aim was to create a comprehensive catalogue of offset printing possibilities for the Italian paper mill Cartiere del Garda, part of EUROPAPIER. The project was complemented by a final studio project in the form of a screen-printed poster, which explored further possibilities and principles developed through the catalogue.

The Studio of Animation and Film explored the theme Pastiche, examining the boundary between digital and analogue animation. Students looked for ways to combine established animation techniques in unexpected forms, push their boundaries, or imitate each other’s distinctive visual qualities.

The Studio of Graphic Design and New Media turned its attention to music. The assignment involved establishing a musical ensemble or sound project and creating not only the audiovisual material itself, but also a complete visual identity. The results include posters, album covers, photographs, music videos, and merchandise.

The Studio of Photography II developed several parallel projects during the semester. Free-form works on the theme Analog were presented at the Prosté věci exhibition at the Prague Minorite Monastery. An installation at the Mikulandská Technology Center then presented a collaboration with the Studio of Textile Design, offering individual interpretations of textile objects and hemp-based products.

The Studio of Design and Digital Technologies explored alternative ways of image-making. Students traced the development of imaging technologies, their limitations, and their impact on everyday life, while seeking new or forgotten possibilities with both practical and artistic potential.

The Conservation and Restoration of Arts and Crafts is participating among the exhibitors for the first time this year. The newly established program presents the results of the conservation and restoration of specific objects, while also showcasing technological replicas of historical artefacts.

The Studio of Visual Arts presents works that were exhibited at Gallery A4 in Bratislava as part of the project A Little Partz Might Kill Someone. At this year’s Artsemester, the programme thus presents a selection of students’ work in an international context, while also highlighting one of the ways in which work created at UMPRUM reaches audiences beyond the school in curated groups.

Prepared for UMPRUM Online by Karla Kislingerová
Photography: Emma Lea Nykodýmová and Yulia Ni

The Studio of Architecture I spent the summer semester exploring new visions for Karlín, the temporary “new home” of a large part of the UMPRUM student community. The semester also included a collaboration with the Tallinn Architecture Biennale.

Building on last year’s theme of rivers, The Studio of Architecture III explored the relationship between architecture and plants through the project Terra Botanica. Students approached vegetation not merely as a complementary element, but as an active component of architectural design. Plants became structural, spatial, and environmental elements, opening up questions about new forms of coexistence between architecture and living organisms.

The Studio of Industrial Design once again worked on assignments tailored to individual year groups. First-year students created sculptures expressing two opposing emotions, while second-year students explored mechanical principles. The upper-year students, together with external lecturer Tomáš Chludil, focused on the theme of camping. The final studio assignment centered on a seemingly ordinary everyday object that is an integral part of many households – the clothespin.

The Studio of Fine Art II worked with an open-ended theme that gave students space for individual approaches and the development of their own artistic research. 

The Studio of Fine Art IV approached the final studio projects as Practicum in Contemporary Art II. Students defined their own personal areas of interest, which they then developed through sketches, material experiments, and the realization of a work of art in any medium.

The Visiting Artist Studio focused on the theme of Symbiotic Settlement, Implantation, and Grafting. The project explored questions of mutual intergrowth, transfer, and coexistence, which students developed through working with their temporary tutors. The final studio projects were then developed around an open-ended theme.

The Studio of Glass prepared the project Behind the Scenes, which will culminate in a presentation at Milan Design Week in spring 2027. The project was inspired by the opera La gazza ladra (The Thieving Magpie) by Gioachino Rossini. This provided an opportunity to explore the sparkle and reflective qualities of glass, as well as the themes of manipulation and deception that lie at the heart of the opera.

The Studio of Ceramics and Porcelain explored, in the final studio project Map and Landscape, how a landscape can reveal traces of human presence while simultaneously influencing our behavior. In this context, the map does not represent a territory through cartography, but rather a way of capturing, articulating, and sharing the relationships between humans and the natural landscape.

The Studio of Concept – Object – Meaning (K.O.V.) focused on technology-based assignments, including, for example, the production of a set of hammered vessels. The final studio project Habit as Material shifted attention to repetitive bodily gestures. Students explored how these habits shape our relationship to the body, the environment, and social norms, creating objects designed to disrupt these automatisms and open up space for new questions.

The leadership of The Studio of Fashion Design left the selection of each student’s sub-theme to a randomly assigned film, which subsequently became the basis for their design collection. A key focus was translating the film’s atmosphere into the resulting garments. The process also involved the use of artificial intelligence tools as a means of developing ideas or as an alternative to costly photographic or video production. The technical component of the project focused on the trench coat, its history, construction, and characteristic details.

The Studio of Illustration and Graphics explored the map as a means of storytelling. The project was created for the Bologna Children’s Book Fair. The final studio projects likewise turned their attention to Italy, drawing on memories of the spring plein-air trip to Tuscany, which found expression in drawings, paintings, and journals documenting experiences from the group journey.

The Studio of Graphic Design and Visual Communication focused during the semester on the project Monte di Luce, whose aim was to create a comprehensive catalogue of offset printing possibilities for the Italian paper mill Cartiere del Garda, part of EUROPAPIER. The project was complemented by a final studio project in the form of a screen-printed poster, which explored further possibilities and principles developed through the catalogue.

The Studio of Animation and Film explored the theme Pastiche, examining the boundary between digital and analogue animation. Students looked for ways to combine established animation techniques in unexpected forms, push their boundaries, or imitate each other’s distinctive visual qualities.

The Studio of Photography II developed several parallel projects during the semester. Free-form works on the theme Analog were presented at the Prosté věci exhibition at the Prague Minorite Monastery. An installation at the Mikulandská Technology Center then presented a collaboration with the Studio of Textile Design, offering individual interpretations of textile objects and hemp-based products.

The Studio of Design and Digital Technologies explored alternative ways of image-making. Students traced the development of imaging technologies, their limitations, and their impact on everyday life, while seeking new or forgotten possibilities with both practical and artistic potential.