#Multifunctional building #Prague (Praha) #1929
Bubenská 1
170 00
Prague (Praha),
Czechia
Public transport: Vltavská
Today's use: Offices
Description
In terms of orientation, the building follows the neighbouring church kostel sv. Antonina Paduánského. The differently designed cubes housed different sections inside. The northern wing was once used by the administration of the Prague transport company. The southern wing near the river was used by the public utilities. The western porch next to the church originally housed the medical and spa areas, which were used by employees.The basement housed several halls and a cinema. The spacious centre area is laid out like a passageway. The staircase or the lifts/paternosters take you to the top floor. The paths lead to roof terraces, which were intended to serve as recreational areas for the employees. We cannot say whether they were actually used in this way. The two two-storey porches, which run like arms towards the central part of the building, appear very elegant. The windows on the upper floor are set without intermediate pillars, which gives the building its striking modernity.Inside, the building was warmed in winter and cooled in summer by an air conditioning system.
Description
In terms of orientation, the building follows the neighbouring church kostel sv. Antonina Paduánského. The differently designed cubes housed different sections inside. The northern wing was once used by the administration of the Prague transport company. The southern wing near the river was used by the public utilities. The western porch next to the church originally housed the medical and spa areas, which were used by employees.The basement housed several halls and a cinema. The spacious centre area is laid out like a passageway. The staircase or the lifts/paternosters take you to the top floor. The paths lead to roof terraces, which were intended to serve as recreational areas for the employees. We cannot say whether they were actually used in this way. The two two-storey porches, which run like arms towards the central part of the building, appear very elegant. The windows on the upper floor are set without intermediate pillars, which gives the building its striking modernity.Inside, the building was warmed in winter and cooled in summer by an air conditioning system.
History
Back in history the Praguers had to wait a little longer for this building. Although the competition was held in 1926 and construction was due to begin in 1927, the project did not start until 1929 and construction then took almost five years. The building was symbolically opened on 7 March 1935 on the occasion of the 85th birthday of Czechoslovak President Tomáš G. Masaryk. The fact that the building was given a prominent role was due to the issue of electricity. Although this medium was not new, it began to influence people's everyday lives more and more in the 1930s.
It is interesting to note that the consortium of electric companies included the Prague transport companies. Customers bought their season tickets on the ground floor. However, the company also offered a second area. This included the municipal utilities, which provided the electricity. They promoted also all kinds of electrical devices. This meant that electrical household appliances were presented and sold in the building's ground floor. The concept of electricity was widely disseminated to the population.
During World War II, the light-coloured facade was painted dark to protect the building from air raids at night. Unfortunately, it was never possible to completely remove the dark colour afterwards. The spirit used to wash off the colour also damaged the glaze of the ceramic cladding. After the end of the war, only the transport companies remained in the building. They used it until the 1990s. After that, the building became abandoned. It wasn't until 2018 that the renovation breathed new life into it, used as an office building today. For the Open House festival this great building is largely open to the public one weekend a year.
History
Back in history the Praguers had to wait a little longer for this building. Although the competition was held in 1926 and construction was due to begin in 1927, the project did not start until 1929 and construction then took almost five years. The building was symbolically opened on 7 March 1935 on the occasion of the 85th birthday of Czechoslovak President Tomáš G. Masaryk. The fact that the building was given a prominent role was due to the issue of electricity. Although this medium was not new, it began to influence people's everyday lives more and more in the 1930s.
It is interesting to note that the consortium of electric companies included the Prague transport companies. Customers bought their season tickets on the ground floor. However, the company also offered a second area. This included the municipal utilities, which provided the electricity. They promoted also all kinds of electrical devices. This meant that electrical household appliances were presented and sold in the building's ground floor. The concept of electricity was widely disseminated to the population.
During World War II, the light-coloured facade was painted dark to protect the building from air raids at night. Unfortunately, it was never possible to completely remove the dark colour afterwards. The spirit used to wash off the colour also damaged the glaze of the ceramic cladding. After the end of the war, only the transport companies remained in the building. They used it until the 1990s. After that, the building became abandoned. It wasn't until 2018 that the renovation breathed new life into it, used as an office building today. For the Open House festival this great building is largely open to the public one weekend a year.
Sources
Sources
