The “Cultural Heritage in Prague” seminar focuses on significant places and monuments. Together we will observe the famous Quarters and discover the beauty of architecture from the Romanesque and Gothic periods, Renaissance and Baroque styles, and Historicism, Secession, and Cubism and Modernism. Throughout specific tasks, students will learn how to describe and classify architectonical elements into specific periods and will learn how to understand the principles of decorative systems. Students will work in small teams and prepare answers to specific questions concerning the broader historical context of cultural heritage and monument care. Through worksheets and accompanying materials, they will learn to describe and classify monuments based on formal elements. Classes will take place outside, in the city, in the gardens, in front of the facades, or inside the churches and other cultural monuments. The seminar is intended for students of the Erasmus+ from all disciplines and different fields of study programs from CU, as well as for art history students from the daily study program of KTF. If you are interested in cultural heritage and would like to know more about urbanism and architectural ensembles of outstanding quality in Prague, you are sincerely welcome to attend this seminar.

The seminar “World Art Collections” is intended mainly for Erasmus+ students, but also for other full-time students at CU. The aim of the seminar is to introduce students to selected examples of museum and gallery institutions around the world and to explore their character and significance together. Through individual institutions, students will get to know not only important architects who designed museum buildings but also the content of their collections. The seminar is composed on the basis of papers that the students will report continuously. The content of the papers will be the setting of the museum or gallery in the geographical context of the country and city where the building is located. The task is not only to analyze the architectural form of the museum building but also to present the history of the museum and the collection, important personalities of the founders and curators, important exhibition projects that were presented on the grounds of the institution, etc. The student also chooses one specific piece of art that is iconic for the given collection and interprets it. Students will mainly use Internet resources to prepare their reports.

The seminar is taught in the form of excursions through Prague and its surroundings. The aim of the course is to acquaint students with the cultural and historical development of Prague in the Middle Ages with occasional overlaps into the younger period. During the course, students could visit major landmarks, such as Prague Castle or Basilica of Sts Peter and Paul at Vyšehrad, as well as less known places. Excursions beyond Prague are focused on visiting places within the Central Bohemian Region, for example Levý Hradec or Kutná Hora. The course is taught every Thursday during both semesters.

The introductory survey comprises geographical location of the ancient cultures of the Middle East, languages, scripts, cult, or types of sacred literature. The highlighted issue is the phenomenon of strict monotheism as observed in the canonical texts of the Old Testament and the Quran. These will be seen in the stream of apocryphal and “heretical” substrate, particularly documented in the stories of essential Biblical figures as Abraham, Solomon, Joseph, John the Baptist, or Jesus Christ himself. Respective interpretations of these will show the appearance and main teachings of the three “heavenly religions” – Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. The seminar will combine visual presentations of the mentioned topics, interpretive reading of primary texts, and relation of secondary explanations presented in students´ papers.

Old Testament figures as Adam, Noah, Abraham, etc. are presented in biblical and apocryphal texts with visual illustrations from both western and eastern art. Jewish, Christian, and Muslim traditions are compared to show the different interpretive outlines. Teacher's presentations are complemented with students' entries on chosen topics.

The course focuses on the art of the 19th, and 20th centuries, and the present day within Prague's cultural and historical context. Its purpose is to gain awareness of significant personalities and artistic movements of the past and present through direct experience with specific works of art and monuments. Teaching occurs directly in selected state and private galleries and museums of fine arts and design (National Gallery, Prague City Gallery, DOX - Center for Contemporary Art, Museum Kampa, Museum of Decorative Arts, National Museum, etc.). A natural part of the course is also to acquaint oneself theoretically and practically with art criticism and how to write exhibition reviews.

The course of ancient and medieval art conveys the audience a comprehensive image of the basic outlines ofancient and medieval art, from its origins and foundations in Celtic and Egyptian civilization up to the Late Gothic. unveil the nature of the observed epoch. The winter semester will be concluded by Romanesque art. For foreign students who cannot attend lectures in the Czech language, the course is implemented in the form of self-study in the Italian language.

This course covers the topic of secular iconography in the visual arts from the classical antiquity to the 20th century. Attention will be paid to classical mythology, allegories, personifications, basics of emblematics, intermingling of secular and sacred iconography at selected works of art. The course is taught as a self study option for foreign students who cannot attend lectures in Czech language.

The course focuses on several of the key Czech writers and playwrights of the 20th and 21st centuries - Egon Hostovský, Milan Kundera, Josef Jedlička, Jáchym Topol, Jiří Kratochvil, and Lenka Lagronová - through the reading and discussion of English translations of their works. The aim is to analyze selected dramatic and prose texts, develop critical thinking, and explore the transnational influence of Czech literature.

With a focus on non-native English speakers, the course aims to develop critical reading, discussion, and analysis skills through reading the chosen works of English authors. The seminar is focused on creating an intellectually stimulating environment that encourages active participation and meaningful dialogue. Engaging in discussions with peers will not only enhance students’ fluency in English but also provide a platform for the exchange of ideas, critical thinking, and the exploration of diverse perspectives.

The covenant (Hebrew "berit", Greek "diatheke") is a fundamental structural element of the life of Israel and the disciples of Jesus in the Church in relation to God. The course presents the basic types of covenants against the background of the ancient Near East and shows how their scheme is applied as a theological category in biblical books. The canonical approach prevails in the interpretation, i.e. with regard to the whole Bible, which, however, respects the historical circumstances and the literary character of the individual texts studied.

Continuation of the course of patrology, i.e. history of ancient Christian literature. This part focuses on writers from the 4th to the 6th centuries. The students will get to know the biographies, literary and historical analyses of the works, and especially the various authors' theological thinking. The lectures are held in Czech. An individual study plan for international students will be discussed with the lecturer at the beginning of the course when the required reading will be indicated.