Building
The IMC building ranks among the most significant architectural works of the postwar period. At that time, Czech architecture broke with the style of socialist realism and again established contact with modern world architecture.
The leader of the project was architect Karel Prager with contributions from Professor Otto Wichterle, the founder and director of the Institute in early 1960s.
Many significant technological innovations were utilized here such as beamless concrete ceilings and hanging walls. The architectural value of the Institute has been appreciated in a number of publications on art history. The building was declared a national cultural monument in 2000.
The Otto Wichterle Monument
Professor Otto Wichterle was one of the greatest Czech chemists. The Prague municipal authority decided to erect his memorial in front of the Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, inherently connected with Otto Wichterle´s professional life.
The monument designed by the sculptor Michal Gabriel together with architects Oleg Haman and Jana Podpěrová was finished in October 2005 on the 90th anniversary of Professor Wichterle´s birthday (he died in 1998). On this occasion Otto Wichterle was awarded in memoriam the Walter J. Zable Medal for Excellence in Technology by the International Technology Institute in San Diego, California for his life´s work.
