Star Artists to Transform Pilsen’s Walls
Wallz Festival is set to be part of this year’s celebrations honoring significant anniversaries in Pilsen, a city that promotes these under the title Pilsen 2025 . The festival will feature a new artistic interpretation in a notable section of the city’s historic area, Proluka , marking the 10-year anniversary of Pilsen being designated as the European Capital of Culture. A new mural will act as a fresh addition to the historic fresco Theatrum Mundi found on the neighboring building’s facade. While the older artwork reflects on the past, the new piece titled Diagonal , created by artist Itzio Barberena, bridges history, the present, and future through a visual interpretation of St. Bartholomew’s Cathedral, adding a contemporary touch to the contrasting historical artwork. This design was chosen from a public contest that received over 320 submissions from various countries, including Japan, Australia, South Africa, Colombia, Brazil, and the United States.
New paintings at Slovany station and mural in Kooperativa
Other important locations that will receive artistic enhancements this year include the retaining wall situated at Slovany railway station. One of today’s most notable Serbian artists, Predrag Radovanović, will apply his unique blend of contrasts, graffiti, and traditional motifs to the large surface. Additionally, there will be a painting created on the ramps of the new train station by Julian Manzelli, a multidisciplinary artist from Buenos Aires, known by the name Chu Doma. The Railway Administration’s Directorate has shown interest in enhancing both areas artistically, marking their fifth collaborative project over the years.
Another captivating spot nominated for this festival by its owners is the headquarters of Kooperativa pojišt’ovna, situated on Zahradní street. The design by Italian artist Fabio Petani, who combines knowledge from chemistry and botany in his artwork, will adorn the facade of this 1990s corporate building. The building’s owners aim to make the architecture feel more inviting and visually appealing while actively promoting a sense of community. Furthermore, this area will become a unique experiment, as the headquarters will have its mural repainted annually with a different design during each Wallz Festival.
Playground on Brněnská Street or passage U Prazdroje
For the second time in the festival’s history, there will be a large-scale painting covering the area of a playground. This year, the chosen site is the sports field of the 7th elementary school located on Brněnská Street. The work will be brought to life by Slovak artists Marián Baláž along with collaborators from the Walldesign group. Their project is designed to inject vitality into dull and neglected sports grounds, aiming to draw kids away from screens and encourage them to engage in outdoor activities and form social connections.
An often overlooked yet essential area that deserves a visual upgrade is the passage under the track At Prazdroj. Recently, this underpass has been cleaned up, but it still needs work to make its appearance more inviting for those walking through. This task will be taken on by artists from the Romanian street art festival ArTown, including Delia Cîrstea and Roper Repor, known for their playful and vibrant paintings that have revitalized facades in cities like Bucharest and beyond.
Murals on pillars and final party in Proluka
Two creations will be attributed to students from Pilsen Sutnarky. The facade of a building located on Kaplířova Street was submitted to the festival by its owner, the Diocese of Pilsen, who wished to replace an unattractive advertisement for a company that is no longer in existence with artwork by student Kateřina Šípková. Another project consists of two bridge pillars on the Radbuza Embankment artistically treated by Lucian Mikundů.
Additionally, a new design will arrive on a railway pillar located on the embankment of the English Embankment. This structure has suffered severe damage from tagging and other forms of vandalism, and it is due for a makeover.
A Czech artist known as Václav Matoušek aka Bill the Hobo will add his distinctive touch with a raw and playful painting that features exaggerated, humorous, and ironic figurative themes. The festival will also enliven a bridge abutment located beneath the tram line on Dobřanské street, where the German artist Enrico Sutter aka Alive 4000 will apply his imaginative style, unafraid to experiment and mix different artistic methods on a large surface. Enrico’s works at Wallz will be featured by Chemnitz 2025 – European Capital of Culture.
The festival will officially wrap up with a final party in Proluka on June 27 at 5 pm. That same day, the Wallz exhibition no. 6 will open, showcasing the studio work of the artists who took part in this year’s festival at the café Foyer DEPO2015. This exhibition will be available for viewing until September 15, 2025.
