A house with hands embracing a tree, a giant clock adorned with sculptures, and vivid walls—could you imagine such an extraordinary building exists? It does! This remarkable place located in Brno, Czech Republic, known as Kristkův Dům, is a real architectural marvel. It undoubtedly captures the attention of passersby, which is no surprise at all, given its truly extraordinary design.
Kristkův Dům, or Kristek House, is a building transformed into a monumental assemblage by Czech sculptor Lubo Kristek between 2015 and 2017. One highlight is its custom-designed clockwork by Elekon, a Vyškov company specializing in public clocks. This system ensures accurate timekeeping and adjusts automatically to winter time. The house’s façade features a painted railway line, part of Kristek’s recurring heavenly highway motif, first seen in his 1974 painting, The Heavenly Highway of Aunt Fränzi. It also references the Brno-Tišnov railway (Tišnovka) from Kristek’s childhood. At the house’s corner, two large golden hands cradle a living tree, symbolizing growth, protection, and harmony. This centerpiece reflects Kristek’s philosophy of interconnectedness and nature’s reverence.
Kristkův Dům is a living work of art, weaving past, present, and future into a unified vision. If you’re in Brno, don’t miss this extraordinary fusion of art, architecture, and history.