T. G. M. Square in Tábor

photo: Ing. arch. Pavel Barták

The idea of the design was to create a generous, variably usable space that was lacking in Tábor, and to complement it with a quiet zone that would offer residents and visitors to the city diverse opportunities for relaxation. The design works with several spatial elements - the main open area supports the dominant, axially symmetrical Agricultural School and forms a bay with it on the pedestrian promenade connecting the city center and the railway station. The flat area provides space for cultural, social, and recreational use and constitutes the main central element of the square. Irregular concrete blocks forming the main surface highlight the graphic pattern of dark expansion joints. The grinding of the concrete reveals the texture of the local granite aggregate, widely used in the city's pavement. Light strips embedded in the joints conceal the initials TGM. At the ends of the letters are interactive tiles that allow changing color moods, controlling simple games, and activating misting spots for refreshment on summer days. The drainage of the area is discreetly resolved within the expansion joints as well. Near the library in the southwest corner of the square contrasts with the main area, the "students' grove," a fresh refuge under the crowns of trees planted in a regular grid in the stone pavement. Here, benches, hammocks, rotating sun loungers, a drinking fountain, and a public bookshelf are freely placed among the trees. The furniture includes sockets for charging electronics and a wi-fi hotspot. The statue of a Red Army soldier was preserved in its original location as part of the grid. In the opposite corner of the square is the restored extension of the oldest Czech botanical garden, returning the atmosphere of an arboretum back to the square from which it was once gradually displaced. It is a strip of freely growing tall trees, bordered by beds of ornamental perennials, among which are wooden docks.