Institute of Housing and Clothing Culture, Prague [Ústav bytové a oděvní kultury ÚBOK]

ÚBOK was founded in 1959 as a scientific institute dealing with modern housing. The department of spatial design was headed by Emanuela Kittrichová (1909–89). Other key members of the Institute included Ivana Čapková (born 1942) and Helena Bukovanská (1942–2021).
An important activity of ÚBOK was the creation of purpose-driven interiors and furniture, often in interdisciplinary cooperation with sociologists. A remarkable summary of the institute’s work can be found in the 1978 book ‘Nábytek, Muž, Bydlení’ (Furniture, Man, Housing), which defines interior design in a modular, scientific way, following the German architect Ernst Neufert and his theory of building design. ÚBOK transformed the methods of interior design in the 1972 exhibition ‘Furniture for 500,000 New Apartments’, which featured furniture designed by Jindřich Halabala (1903–78) for market release in 1971 by Universal Prostějov. The exhibition highlighted the impracticality of Monobloc chairs and sofas, as well as the limited range of products, especially for children and the elderly.