When Construction Becomes Art: Zlín Wins the Czech Finals of the Modelium 2026 Competition

The Czech national finals of the 18th annual Modelium competition have a winner. The Zlín Secondary Technical School handled this year’s theme, “A Building as a Work of Art,” the best. Also advancing to the international superfinals are the Brno Polytechnic High School, the Ostrava Secondary Technical School of Applied Sciences, and the Pilsen Secondary Technical School of Applied Sciences. They will compete for the overall victory against four Slovak teams on November 4, 2026, at City Campus—the New Building of the Faculty of Arts in Ostrava.

This year, students were tasked with creating an original model of a structure out of corrugated cardboard on the theme “A Building as a Work of Art.” Their designs were intended to combine architecture with a distinctive artistic element while also exploring the possibility of constructing the building using 3D concrete printing technology. Six schools participated in the Czech national finals: the Secondary Industrial School in Zlín; the Secondary Industrial School of Construction in Ostrava; the Secondary Vocational School of Construction and the Secondary Vocational Training School of Construction in Kolín; the General František Fajtl Business Academy and Secondary Vocational School in Louny; the Secondary Polytechnic School in Brno and Jílová; and the Secondary Industrial School of Construction in Plzeň.

“This year’s models showed that students are able to perceive architecture as a combination of technology, function, and artistic expression. The students weren’t afraid of bold forms and original solutions, but at the same time, they had to think about how their designs could function as actual buildings. It is precisely this combination of creativity and technical thinking that we want to promote through the competition,” said Tomáš Hess, sales director at HSF System.

The Secondary Technical School in Zlín took home a cash prize of 15,000 CZK from the Czech national finals. The HSF System Employee Award, worth 7,500 CZK, was awarded to the Brno Polytechnic Secondary School, Jílová. All finalist teams also received a sketch fee of 2,000 CZK.

The four top Czech schools from Brno, Ostrava, Plzeň, and Zlín will now compete in the international super-final. Together, they will form the Czech half of the eight-team starting field, which will be joined by the four top teams from the Slovak national round. The overall winner of Modelium 2026 will be decided on November 4 at City Campus—the New Building of the Faculty of Arts in Ostrava.

The general partner of the Modelium competition is the international construction group HSF System. The main partner of the competition is the real estate development group ANTRACIT. Both companies are part of the PURPOSIA Group investment holding. The product partner of the competition is the Association of Corrugated Cardboard Manufacturers.

Modelium

The international Modelium competition is intended for high school students specializing in construction from the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The essence of the competition is to create original models of structures made from eco-friendly and sustainable materials (corrugated cardboard) based on a given theme, such as the National Pavilion for the EXPO World’s Fair, a Floating City, Europe’s Tallest Skyscraper, a House on Mars, the National Library of the Czech Republic, or the School of Dreams. Over the course of the competition’s history, more than 400 models of various structures have been built. In the first round, contestants submit photos of their models. A panel of experts selects six from each country. These contestants advance to the Czech and Slovak national finals. Eight superfinalists will emerge from both national rounds. The top finishers will share over 130,000 CZK. The winner will receive 25,000 CZK and a traveling trophy. The final rounds take place at interesting locations such as Villa Grossmann and Dolní Vítkovice in Ostrava, the Main Train Station, the Štefánik Observatory, the Klementinum in Prague, and the Šance Waterworks in the Beskydy Mountains. The Modelium project won 2nd place in the “Zlatý středník 2024” communications competition in the Czech Republic and 3rd place in the PROKOP 2025 competition in Slovakia.

Media contact:

Lukáš Klapil, Crest Communications Ostrava, Cell: +420 603 824 194, Email: klapil@crestmorava.cz