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Radoslav L. Sutnar was the son of a prominent Pilsen native, designer, typographer and versatile artist Ladislav Sutnar, after whom one of the nine faculties of the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen is named. Radoslav was born on 25 July 1929 and died on 11 December 2023 at the age of 94. Eleven months later, the city and the artistic community placed his remains in the grave together with those of his wife Elaine. Radoslav's final resting place is located in the immediate vicinity of the grave of his father Ladislav and mother Frantiska at the Central Cemetery in Pilsen.

Although both Ladislav and Radoslav Sutnar died in the USA, where they had lived for a long time, their remains were transported to the Czech Republic, where they both had roots and friends. One of Radoslav's closest friends was the founder of the present Faculty of Design and Art of the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen - former dean, now vice-dean, Assoc. akad. mal. Josef Mištera.

Today the unveiling of Radoslav Sutnar's tombstone took place. It happened almost exactly on the day 10 years after the same act, when the grave of his father Ladislav was unveiled. Did you attend this event?
At Radoslav's request, I had been arranging all this for years and was involved in the preparation of the whole event, but in the end I did not attend the unveiling of Radoslav and Elaine Sutnar's grave. I had some technical problems with my car today, but mostly I was afraid that my emotions would get the better of me. I realized that this was the end of an important chapter in the development of our faculty. Radoslav and I really liked each other, and I looked up to him as a successful older brother, as he called me. I will never again brag to him about what I have accomplished or get an encouraging email. I miss him. But importantly, a promise has been fulfilled: a beautiful tombstone stands in the Central Cemetery in Pilsen from today, symbolizing Radoslav's field of study (architecture and urban planning) and his deep relationship with his life partner Elaine. Its author Luděk Míšek managed to express all this in his architectural and sculptural language - simple geometric shapes remind of two figures, where one is mirrored in the other and at the same time their image is reflected in the black mirror of the tombstone as in eternity.

How did you two meet?
I wanted to build the best art school for the 21st century, open to interdisciplinary collaboration inside and outside the faculty, built on the outstanding personalities of the educators, for whom I will build an original building like a factory or an ancient academy, where the attitudes of educators and students confront and influence each other. I had a school and a building was being built and I wanted a name for the school that you won't find anywhere else. I noticed that Ladislav Sutnar, one of the most important Pilseners, is not properly acknowledged here in Pilsen or elsewhere. So we approached his son Radoslav. He came from the USA to see us. We named the gallery and later the faculty after Ladislav Sutnar. We founded the Ladislav Sutnar Prize, for which the most important design personalities and leaders of the most important schools and memory institutions come from all over the world. We founded the Ladislav Sutnar Archive. We brought Steve Heller and Prince William Lobkowicz to the d.r.h.c. title. We moved his parents to their hometown of Pilsen, founded the Sutnar Shapes project, and in collaboration with the School of Visual Art, won the Red Dot title, published a number of books here and abroad, organized a number of exhibitions, and so on. The friendship with Radoslav Sutnar has given our Faculty of Design and Art Ladislav Sutnar - Sutnarka - a fantastic dynamic and thus a lot of joy for us and him. Our necessary trust was absolute. When we agreed sometime in 2013 that I would establish the Radoslav and Elaine Sutnar Foundation in the future, he immediately made a will in which he bequeathed all his assets to the Foundation.

What exactly did you two have in common back then?
I think he liked the fact that I wasn't afraid of anything. I had visions and I wasn't afraid to make them happen. We fell in love right away. He saw that I wasn't afraid to dream and make my dreams come true. He told me I was an American, a Yankee, that I was a true Sutnar, a miracle maker. He liked that I wanted nothing for myself, that I sacrificed everything for my goal - the faculty - and that I kept my word. He told me I was the brother he wanted to have. I had never had a brother and had been looking for one all my life, so I accepted it easily. We then became friends who trust each other in everything and never let each other down. He was a great American manager who had the highest ambitions and knew how to fulfill them. He was happy to support, motivate, inspire and rejoice in our successes.

You said an important era was over. How do you think it will be now? Where will the Ladislav Sutnar Faculty of Design and Art go from here?
It's over for me. The world has shrunk for me. Sutnarka is working perfectly, just as Radoslav wanted. He knew how to motivate. So I believe that Sutnarka now and in the future will be worthy of bearing the Sutnar name. There is a perfect brand in that name, which presents the content, mission and vision of an institution that must not slip into mediocrity, must have the highest standards, must be excellent, must always be original and ahead of its time, must be a meeting place of opinions, nations, cultures, the meeting of art and design with science, and must be in the top ten art schools in the world. So I think the goal is the same and there is a lot to work on.

The unveiling ceremony was attended not only by the Rector of ZČU Miroslav Lávička and the Dean of FDU ZČU Vojtěch Aubrecht, but also by doc. akad. mal. František Steker from FDU ZČU, the founder of Graphic Design and Visual Communication, who is behind the logo of the University of West Bohemia. "The event had a commemorative effect on me, it brought back memories of the deposition of Ladislav Sutnar's remains 10 years ago. Of course, the great contribution of Associate Professor Mištera, who built this school and without whom there would be nothing here, was emphasised on the spot," he said.

The date of the unveiling of Radoslav Sutnar's tombstone was not chosen at random - the aim was to be as close as possible to the Ladislav Sutnar Awards ceremony, which took place on the same evening. You can read more about Radoslav L. Sutnar here.