PIARIST CENTRE BUDAPEST
„A” épület rekonstrukció
Architect in charge János Golda
Co-Architect Zoltán Kovács, Erzsébet Mészáros
Architect associate(s) M. Tünde Szojka,
András Debreczeni, Gábor Nagy, Bence Varga,
Dániel Vermes, Gábor Zahorán, Katalin Alkér
General planning M-Teampannon
Associate architects kollektív műterem, KAAVA
Statics István Kenese (†), Tibor Csáki
Building services eng. Tibor Battai, János Nagy
Building electricity Ferenc Kelemen
Building electricity Ferenc Kelemen
Fire protection György Báder
Visual design ZOA
Photos Zoltán Kovács, Tamás Szántó
Client Hungarian Province of Piarist Order
Location Budapest, Hungary
47°29’33.4″N 19°03’08.3″E
Area 18,000 m2
Year 2006 – 2011
Location
Located in the historic city centre of Budapest with a direct view of the Danube and the Buda Hills, the building is part of the World Heritage Site. It has two wings: building 'A', the subject of our design, which has been vacant for nearly a decade, and building 'B', which was renovated from the inside in 2004 and is currently home to the Sapientia Monastic University of the Theology.
The plot boundaries are also the boundary walls of the building. The passageway under the bridges connecting both parts of the building is Piarista köz which leads to the Danube bank from one of the most popular pedestrian streets, Váci utca. Between the building and the Danube bank located the 15th of March Square under which ancient, medieval and modern archaeological monuments were found. The square and its side streets have recently been renewed, creating a worthy environment for the inhabitants. The building surrounds the oldest Christian monument in Budapest, the Belvárosi parish church, which has a Gothic sanctuary and is currently under renovation. Next to the church, the Elizabeth Bridge spans the river and offers a long-awaited view of the city. People nowadays begin to discover the square and the streets around the building, the untapped perks of the area. The parapets of the ground floor window have been lowered to the walkway level, thus opening the building to the public. As architects, our task was also to create harmony between the building and its surroundings, and during design it was taken into account to the maximum extent possible.
History of the building
The site has special characteristics. In every era it had strategic importance. In ancient Roman times the site was the site of a Roman castrum. In the Middle Ages and the modern period it was the centre of the emerging Pest, with the old town hall and market square. The Piarists settled here at the beginning of the 18th century, in a small building next to the town hall. Over time, the Teaching Order expanded and moved into the larger building next door, until they had their whole group of buildings. At that time there was no square in front of the Danube bank, everything was built in.
Later they also acquired the famous Glöckersberg-Esterházy Palace. Many people were envious of the Piarists for having so much property in the most valuable location in the city centre, and Emperor Joseph II tried to take their estates away from them, but fortunately failed. The early 20th century started an explosion of development in Pest, and real estate speculation began. Almost the entire city centre was redeveloped to create new and larger buildings. At this time, the architect of the Piaristas, Dezső Hültl, designed the present building complex, which was built during the First World War between 1914 and 1917.
Originally the school was in building A, the convent was in building B.
On the ground and first floors shops have been set up and rented out, referring to the market that used to be there and to the fact that building maintenance requires financing. On the Danube front, a two-story gymnasium with high parapet windows was built on the ground floor, because at the time the city's regulatory plan was to incorporate the Danube square into the building, but fortunately this was not completed. On the second floor, also with a two-story wing, a large chapel was built in neo-Baroque style. Above it, on the fourth floor, there was a staggered natural history lecture hall. We can say that the main rooms were designed in the Danube wing.
During World War II, the house was hit by several bombs, and the roof of the Danube bank wing with the tower had to be first demolished. Later, during nationalisation, the Piarists had to leave this building and were moved into another one. Over the decades, the building has housed several functions, including the faculty of humanities of the ELTE. The large chapel was used as a university stage, followed by a decade of abandonment. The square in front of the building became an archaeological display park, but it was not designed in the most fortunate way. It was not maintained and became a run-down, deserted site.
Reconstruction
The Piarists decided to return to their centuries-old roots in the city centre. The design brief was to create a building that would combine old traditions with modern values, making the landmark building suitable for modern education and operations.
Functional division of the building
Garage and storage - basement
Shops - ground floor, 1st floor
High School - 2-3-4th floors and service areas on the ground floor, 1st floor
Order House - 5th floor
Offices - 5th floor, attic and gallery
Engineering spaces - attic
The Piarist school was a classical school building with a frame construction, side and middle corridor. The different function groups were placed on different levels, resulting in a layered vertical structure, which was justified by the building's characteristics.
Due to its inadequate proportion and the need for space, an inner courtyard was built in. The 2nd floor where the gym and the large chapel are located was designated as the main floor. The new extension was built on the site of the inner courtyard and includes a large ground floor hall and a two-story high gymnasium, which can also be used as event hall. The mass of the gymnasium is a monolithic sign rising from the ground, a symbol of continuity of numerous historical era following each other. The new building is set back from the walls of the existing building, allowing plenty of natural light to enter the interior from above, with a slit on the north side going down to the main entrance on the ground floor. A central lobby space has been created around the gym. This created the horizontal axis of the building on the 2nd floor, formed by the large chapel - gym - auditorium. During major events, the spaces can be opened into one.
The new gymnasium and auditorium on the 4th floor create a pleasantly scaled schoolyard, unique in the city centre. Structurally, the roofing was a difficult task, because it had to fulfil several functions at the same time: a roof that could be walked on, be lighting in the gym and the hall, provide waterproofing,
and ensure fume extraction from the gym and lobby.
The main entrance to the building is from Piarista Street. From here you can reach the Gymnasium and the Order House. The main and side staircases have been renovated. All floors are accessible by elevator. The shops have their own entrances. Separate entrances to the offices have been created in the Piarista köz (Piarista köz used to be the gateway to the old courtyard).
The chapel has undergone several transformations up until now. During the design process we reinterpreted the interior. The walls were given a homogeneous colour, while the current decorations were retained. The space of the old sanctuary has been reconstructed in an arched shape and a large altar nave has been placed in front of it. The dark wood of the furniture stands out in the abstracted space. Lighting is provided by a cloud-like arrangement of light fittings. On the interior side, the façade windows are covered with art glass. The chapel has a staircase with a separate entrance to the street.
The floor plan was changed in the Piarista Street wing (up to floors 2-5), the old central corridor was integrated with service functions (elevator, water block, mechanical corridor), and the old rooms facing the inner courtyard were combined into a large space for students to hustle and bustle. The changing rooms for the gym are located on the first floor, with separate stair access. The school library and the library of the monastery are also located on the first floor. The Gymnasium is located on floors 2-3-4 and consists of 12 classrooms, group rooms, science lecture halls, school labs, and subject rooms. The monastic apartments and their common areas (living room, dining room, small chapel) are located on the fourth and fifth floors. The school canteen and kitchen are on the second floor, the convent canteen and kitchen on the fifth floor. On the fifth floor, in the north wing, an office block is located from here they are coordinating the activities of the Piarist Order. Since the number of monks of the Piarist Order has been decreasing over the years, it made possible to rent out certain office space in the most panoramic parts of the building with view to the Danube on the fifth floor and also in the roof. This rental provides financial contribution to the running costs of the whole building. While in the attic, the Váci Street wing is still an office area, the other rooms are used for mechanical installations. Parts A and B are all the way accessible from the second floor upwards through all levels.
Due to war damage the old wooden roof structure was rebuilt which we now had to demolish to comply with fire regulations. The roof form along with the Danube roof profile which was bombed during WWII, was rebuilt according to the original plans from reinforced concrete structure, while the tower on top was given a new shape because we wanted a signal the change on the building. In the common areas (corridors and hallways) there are floor and wall coverings with gres tile, in the classrooms there are resin floor and wooden wall coverings, and the monastic flats got parquet flooring. The large chapel and its hall are covered with limestone slabs. The schoolyard is made of artificial stone and wood, and safe access and use over the glazed cassettes is ensured by a steel walkway.
The original external timber sash windows with interlocking sash bars were destroyed and dismantled, and replaced with insulated timber windows with the same look as the original. The street portals, which were not the original ones, were also dismantled, and the original copper portals were replaced with the help of authentic photos,
but in a
modernised and reconstructed way. The façade has been repainted. The roof is covered with a titanium zinc roofing with small elements. For mechanical installations, we have installed steel louvred ventilated roofs in many places, ensuring that they are not visible from the streets. The building has a cladding of expanded metal in several places: tower, courtyard on the sixth floor, Piarista Street garage entrance. Due to the homogenous look the reconstruction of the façade has affected the whole building complex.
