Culture Minister Oto Klempir (for Motorists) yesterday dismissed Alicja Knast as the director of the National Gallery in Prague, the gallery’s spokeswoman Jana Holcova told CTK.
The gallery will be temporarily headed by Olga Kotkova, director of the collection of old masters.
Previous culture minister Martin Baxa (ODS) said the minister should give reasons for his steps. “The silence is fueling speculation about Slovakia’s path,” he said, referring to the fears of the broad cultural public.
Later, the minister wrote on Facebook that the gallery needed more substantial professional development and the ambition to become one of Europe’s leading institutions.
Knast told Czech Television that she was not expecting her dismissal, as in her view the gallery had excellent results, is doing well in terms of visitor numbers and international collaboration, and is making progress in digitisation. She said she was also surprised that she didn’t learn of the decision directly from Klempir, but from ministry staff.
“The minister wants the National Gallery to take a completely different direction,” she said, citing the information she had received regarding her dismissal, without providing further details.
Klempir thanked Knastova for stabilising the gallery and calming the situation following a difficult period. “However, the National Gallery is now entering a new phase that requires more significant professional development and a clear ambition to elevate it to the ranks of Europe’s leading institutions,” he wrote.
The minister said a transparent selection process to fill the position would be launched soon. “I expect the new leadership to bring a strong professional vision, strengthen ties with the domestic and international art history communities, and fully realise the potential of this institution, which has not yet been utilised to the extent commensurate with its significance,” he added.
The role of Kotkova as interim director will be to ensure the smooth operation of the institution and to strengthen the gallery’s professional credibility during this transitional period, Klempir said.
In 2020, Knast won a competition for the post with a six-year term. She took up the role in January 2021 and her mandate would have expired at the end of this year. A musicologist by profession, she previously worked at the Silesian Museum in Katowice.
Citing two unnamed sources, Denik N reported that one of the reasons for Knast’s dismissal was an effort to increase the numbers of visitors at the gallery.
Knast said in materials for the competition that the Prague National Gallery had the potential to attract more than 700,000 visitors a year, but then the coronavirus pandemic began. In 2025, 555,000 people visited the gallery, and in 2024 the gallery had 530,000 visitors.
When Knast was chosen as new director of the gallery by previous Culture Minister Lubomir Zaoralek (Social Democrats), experts considered her appointment surprising. Other candidates for the post were Plato Ostrava gallery director Marek Pokorny and former director of the Prague National Gallery Jiri Fajt.
Earlier this year, Knast said that the gallery, with an annual budget of roughly half a billion crowns, was able to invest less and less money in its exhibitions.
