Hotel Boutique, Hungary
In the first decades of the 19th century, the period of Classicism has founded a century old tradition in urban development: namely the block-like disposition of buildings, the logical rigor of the street network and – for loosening this strictness – the elegantly scaled squares form a well-operating organism even today.
As Budapest turned into a monarchic metropolis, buildings grew in height and got a ‘face lift’ in a historic manner: the previously one or two storey houses were extended with two or three additional floors; and according to the trend of the time, the buildings were reconstructed with new façades chosen eclectically from different historical styles. All this was a natural consequence coming from the process of the ‘use of the city’... but still this is the town we love and this is the natural life of the city.
The exterior appearance of the house is dominantly determined by the four floors ‘reconstructed’ in a historical style, above them the two new stories were (intentionally) created with different depth of the façade and with another kind of articulation in the risalit.
The historical façade kept in a monochrome shade of colours and the upper floors clad uniformly with copper do not ignore each other – in the name of the above mentioned continuity, the contemporary intervention defines itself rightful in its new position but at the same time aware of the fact that its own existence is based on the good proportions of the premises.
This is a mutual reliance, which has influence on the formation of the interior too. The traceable architectural decisions are nicely placed: the duality of the dominant plaster and the copper of the exterior turns into the duality of the white wall and the (artificial and natural) light in the inner public spaces.
There are dynamic colours at the concentrated spots, black and white basic shades in case of the ceramic finishes and sculpture-like white sanitary furniture in the bathrooms. The new extension is logically separated and we do not search or wait for any historical explanation in the interior either...
And why copper? Since it is modern and traditional; progressive, divisive and uniform at the same time; it is just simply obvious. It is final, everlasting and can be reused at any time. It is structured, rich in details but still object-like, monolithic; professional but gives a fillip in a cheeky way.
An article about this building was published in 30/2011 issue of Copper Architecture Forum magazine.
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Owner:
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General Estates Hungary Kft
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Completion date:
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2010
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Country:
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Hungary
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Zip code:
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1054
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City:
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Budapest
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Street:
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Szabadság tér
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Latitude:
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47.5039321
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Longitude:
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19.0512819
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Location:
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Applications:
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Facades
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Type of building:
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Hotels, accommodation
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Copper used:
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Pre-oxidised
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Estate:
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Upgrade
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Season:
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2011
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Title:
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Péter Reimholz and Péter Nagy, Tamás Németh
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Address & description:
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Chief architects: Péter Reimholz – Péter Nagy, W6 Stúdió Kft. Architects: Tamás Németh, Nándor Szabó P. Graphic works: Júlia Reimholz 1026 Budapest Trombitas 18a, 1026 Budapest, Hungary |
