Josef Sudek bust

The Josef Sudek bust stands in Prague's Malá Strana district, just off Újezd street, marking a spot that is inseparable from the life of one of the twentieth century's most celebrated Czech photographers. A memorial plaque and bust honour the man who spent nearly fifty years working a few steps away, in a small garden studio that now operates as a photography gallery.

Where exactly is the bust located?

The site sits in the courtyard of apartment buildings on Újezd, near the boundary between Malá Strana and Smíchov, close to a tram stop and the entrance to Petřín hill. The coordinates 50.082486, 14.404612 mark a spot tucked behind the street frontage, reached through a passage from Újezd — the same courtyard where the historic photography studio still stands.

Who was Josef Sudek, and why is he commemorated here?

Josef Sudek, regarded as one of the finest photographers Czechoslovakia ever produced, began working in June 1927 in a modest, single-storey pavilion set up in the garden behind the buildings on Újezd. It was here, looking out through the studio window, that he created some of the most recognisable series in the history of Czech photography, including "The Window of My Studio" (1940–54), "A Walk in My Garden" (1944–53) and "The Garden of My Studio" (1950–70). He continued working in the studio without interruption until 1976. The bust and its accompanying memorial plaque were placed here in tribute to an artist whose work became permanently tied to this exact address.

What is the studio next to the bust, and how does it relate?

A few metres from the bust stands the building known as The Josef Sudek Studio — a single-storey pavilion of only 61 square metres, built as a faithful replica of the original workspace Sudek used for almost five decades. The garden pavilion at this location has a longer history than Sudek's own tenure there: a similar photographic studio was relocated to the site from Královské Vinohrady as early as 1901, decades before Sudek began using it. In 1990, the building was listed as a protected cultural monument. Since 2000 it has functioned as a photography gallery, run by the investment company PPF Art, and is open to visitors daily except Mondays, from 12:00 to 18:00.

Why does this site matter to photography enthusiasts?

The combination of the bust, the memorial plaque and the preserved studio building creates a rare setting where visitors can sense the atmosphere in which a master photographer once worked. Sudek used the space not only to photograph still life and the view through his own window, but also the everyday life of the garden itself, producing series still regarded as among the most poetic in Czech photographic history. The bust serves as a modest but meaningful point of reference for visitors, letting them connect a specific place with a specific artist before stepping into the gallery itself.

Frequently asked questions

Are the bust and the Sudek studio the same site? They are two elements of the same courtyard on Újezd — the bust and its memorial plaque stand directly beside the former studio building, which now houses a gallery.

Is the studio building original? The current pavilion is a faithful replica of the original workspace Sudek used between 1927 and 1976; the garden pavilion itself, however, dates back to 1901 at this location.

Is the site open to visitors? Yes. The gallery inside the studio building is open daily except Mondays, from 12:00 to 18:00, and the bust stands in a publicly accessible courtyard.

Which famous photo series were created in this studio? Among others, "The Window of My Studio," "A Walk in My Garden" and "The Garden of My Studio" — series documenting the view from the studio and its adjoining garden.

How do you get there? The location is in a courtyard of apartment buildings on Újezd in Malá Strana, near Petřín hill and the border with Smíchov, an easy walk from central Prague.