General reconstruction of the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in London
The buildings of the Czechoslovak diplomatic missions were located from 1918 in several buildings in central London. Although some of them serve different purposes today, they remain part of our history.
The first buildings of the new Czechoslovak embassy in London were situated on Grosvenor Place, but during World War II, they also housed the office of the president and the exile government. The buildings were luxuriously equipped and modernized by the Czechoslovak state, but in the summer of 1944, they were significantly damaged during a bombing raid on London.
From 1970 until the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in 1993, the Czechoslovak embassy was located at the corner of Kensington Palace Gardens and Notting Hill Gate. The new building, designed by architects Šrámek, Bočan, and Štepánský, pays tribute to the brutalist style and won the prestigious RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) award for architecture in 1971. The current Slovak embassy occupies a building originally intended for representative and administrative purposes.
Although in the seventies, architectural brutalism devolved into stark panel housing estates, the embassy building was a modern creative endeavor, an attempt to liberate itself from socialist realism and to follow contemporary global architectural trends. This trend was also confirmed by collaboration with British architect Robert Matthew, the author of the Royal Festival Hall.
In accordance with the principles of brutalism, the exterior of the embassy is constructed from reinforced concrete panels and glass and wooden partitions that divide the interiors. Decorative ornaments on the exterior were rejected by the creators, replaced by unsealed joints between the panels and scratches left by pneumatic drilling and removed formwork. Some of the leading Czechoslovak artists of the time, including Kolíbal, Šimotová, and Roubíček, contributed to the interior.
Today, the building housing the Embassy of the Slovak Republic faces Kensington Palace Gardens. The original purpose of this part was primarily to fulfill representative and administrative functions.
Part of the general reconstruction was a comprehensive technical and technological overhaul, which was immensely technically demanding, not only in terms of implementation but also project-wise, as it had to meet current demands and needs. It also included an architectural and artistic reconstruction. This involved adjusting the fourth floor into apartments for employees and their families, as well as modifications to all other floors which house representative, administrative, and technical-economic spaces. In addition to the building itself, interventions in the exterior environment were also necessary, including the entrance forecourt and garden area.
The main emphasis was placed on preserving the genius loci of the original architectural and artistic design as an expression of respect and humility towards this iconic building and its authors. In addition to the effort to preserve as much of the original through refurbishment and revitalization, there was also an effort to achieve harmony and symbiosis with the original intention through new forms.
After the completion of the current reconstruction, the building will primarily serve not only for the embassy office but also again for the consular section as well as the offices of the Slovak Cultural Center, thus becoming a true "Slovak House" in the heart of London.
The first buildings of the new Czechoslovak embassy in London were situated on Grosvenor Place, but during World War II, they also housed the office of the president and the exile government. The buildings were luxuriously equipped and modernized by the Czechoslovak state, but in the summer of 1944, they were significantly damaged during a bombing raid on London.
From 1970 until the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in 1993, the Czechoslovak embassy was located at the corner of Kensington Palace Gardens and Notting Hill Gate. The new building, designed by architects Šrámek, Bočan, and Štepánský, pays tribute to the brutalist style and won the prestigious RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) award for architecture in 1971. The current Slovak embassy occupies a building originally intended for representative and administrative purposes.
Although in the seventies, architectural brutalism devolved into stark panel housing estates, the embassy building was a modern creative endeavor, an attempt to liberate itself from socialist realism and to follow contemporary global architectural trends. This trend was also confirmed by collaboration with British architect Robert Matthew, the author of the Royal Festival Hall.
In accordance with the principles of brutalism, the exterior of the embassy is constructed from reinforced concrete panels and glass and wooden partitions that divide the interiors. Decorative ornaments on the exterior were rejected by the creators, replaced by unsealed joints between the panels and scratches left by pneumatic drilling and removed formwork. Some of the leading Czechoslovak artists of the time, including Kolíbal, Šimotová, and Roubíček, contributed to the interior.
Today, the building housing the Embassy of the Slovak Republic faces Kensington Palace Gardens. The original purpose of this part was primarily to fulfill representative and administrative functions.
Part of the general reconstruction was a comprehensive technical and technological overhaul, which was immensely technically demanding, not only in terms of implementation but also project-wise, as it had to meet current demands and needs. It also included an architectural and artistic reconstruction. This involved adjusting the fourth floor into apartments for employees and their families, as well as modifications to all other floors which house representative, administrative, and technical-economic spaces. In addition to the building itself, interventions in the exterior environment were also necessary, including the entrance forecourt and garden area.
The main emphasis was placed on preserving the genius loci of the original architectural and artistic design as an expression of respect and humility towards this iconic building and its authors. In addition to the effort to preserve as much of the original through refurbishment and revitalization, there was also an effort to achieve harmony and symbiosis with the original intention through new forms.
After the completion of the current reconstruction, the building will primarily serve not only for the embassy office but also again for the consular section as well as the offices of the Slovak Cultural Center, thus becoming a true "Slovak House" in the heart of London.
Ján Pavúk
The English translation is powered by AI tool. Switch to Czech to view the original text source.
0 comments
add comment
