Central European Forum Olomouc

Concept and architectural design of the new building
The solution for the gap in the vicinity of the Museum of Art, in direct connection to the dominant feature of the opposite Church of Our Lady of Snow, is a challenging task. It is the narrowest place in the center of the historical part of Olomouc, which combines two worlds. On one side is the small scale of medieval parceling, while on the other side, the large scale of palaces, church and military buildings of the Castle area begins. The tension from the different sizes raises a number of questions: How to approach this place, which was built upon by five separate houses? Should one recreate the situation before the historical buildings were demolished in 1969, or take a bolder step into this environment and connect it to the representative buildings instead? The size of the objects and, of course, the meaning of the concept are absolutely crucial moments in such a complicated situation.


Our concept ultimately tries to draw inspiration from both scales, from both opposing worlds. The smaller size is expressed by respecting all five parcels. By repeating the same height of cornices and roofs of the individual houses, the series unites and creates the impression of a single complex, connecting to the adjacent building of the Museum of Art, thus adhering to the large scale. The division of the new museum into individual objects is not a formal act that merely pretends to be a backdrop of five buildings, but, due to the necessary separation of individual functions such as exhibition halls, library, entrance atrium, or bookstore and café, the form of division presented itself automatically. The varying lengths of the individual houses respond to the different sizes of the required functions.


When looking at the historical core of Olomouc from above, we can still trace a number of clusters of gable roofs today. The contextual similarity of the new building with similarly treated blocks is not accidental. With a certain degree of exaggeration, one can perceive a relationship with the oldest preserved depiction of Olomouc on a drawing 3500 years old, where wooden buildings are etched. Gothic parceling, as well as older urbanization of our cities, generally has similar arrangements of buildings with a roof ridge positioned perpendicular to the street. By retreating one of the buildings from the row of houses accurately following the original street line into the background, we gain an entrance piazza that is necessary for creating an adequate entry in the confined conditions of the narrowest part of the historical core. But even this retreat finds its precedent in a nearby solution of space just a few parcels towards Horní náměstí before the functionalist building No. 21.


A very important aspect of the project is the skylighting of the halls. By cutting off the upper part of the hipped roofs, natural daylight enters the inner parts of each object. Especially in the library space, inspiration from similarly styled halls can be seen, whether from unrealized visions of French revolutionary classicists like Boullée and Ledoux or realized library spaces from the 18th and 19th centuries. Even in cases where a floor is inserted into an individual object, daylight is still ensured in the lower floor. This trick is accomplished by inserting a smaller house around which light can flow. In two cases, we arrive at the theme of "a house within a house," where suitable conditions for displaying on the walls are ensured, while in both floors we obtain overhead light.
 

The entire project works rather painstakingly, but perhaps also naively (we understand naivety in this case primarily as a sense of natural childlike imagination), with the type of house as a kind of archetype, which, although it draws from tradition, also wants to be modern. Therefore, we can observe the house not only from the outside, but thanks to the fact that the objects are almost not divided and all social and technical facilities are placed in the hollow perimeter walls of the houses, everything can also be viewed in its full size from the inside. This theme, based on the perception of spatial positive and negative, was explored by Italian architect Luigi Moretti in his plaster models in the 1950s.


Hollow spaces or spaces with "houses in houses" acquire an almost sacred dimension due to the overhead light passing through a narrow slit. However, this feeling is deliberately shattered in several places by the placement of windows through which museum visitors can observe the atmosphere outside the object. It would also be interesting to observe the happenings in the museum from the street. The internal space thus gains a more pleasant environment that should allow occasional breaths and subsequently a new concentration on the presented museum artifacts.


An essential part of the overall concept is the material solution. Just as the designed objects relate in height of cornices and size of roofs to similarly situated elements of the Museum of Art building, so does the material solution of both buildings engage in dialogue. The new objects have a structure designed from exposed concrete, which is colored white with marble aggregate. As a result, the concrete acquires a character similar to artificial stone. This treatment should harmonize with the facade of the Museum of Art, which, after cleaning, should reveal its original quality from similarly colored artificial stone.


2. Layout and operation of the new building
The chosen concept of the new building allowed for a layout that naturally leads to different operational sections. Entering through the newly created pinzet, located at Denisova třída, one enters the first object, which connects to the old building of the Museum of Art. Together, they create an entrance hall where visitors should find basic information about the Central European Forum with a ticket office, cloakroom, and restrooms. The entrance hall also offers seating on a movable staircase - a seating area that should also serve for hosting intimate performances or for opening exhibitions. In this case, the seating area is meant to conceptually express the name of the Central European Forum. All five vessels are linked transversely by a communication axis that gradually guides the visitor through all spaces.


The adjacent object is dedicated to the library, which is designed as a raised hall with four floors of surrounding balconies illuminated from above. Due to its immediate connection to the entrance hall, the reader does not need to go through the museum or other parts of the building and can directly rest and study in the library space. The visitor is surrounded on three sides by books, with only the ground floor part of the four library floors accessible for free selection of books. The remaining floors, which are also visually expressed, serve as a documentation archive. Here, the collection of artistic documentation by Jiří Hůla and the library of Otto F. Babler should primarily be stored. A large freight elevator connecting the basements with the upper floors is also situated in the library space. In the end space of the vessel, separated by a communication corridor and elevator, a security room is inserted.

We move to another object, which is also accessible from the outdoor entrance piazza. Here, there is a bookstore and a small café through self-service vending machines. From here, visitors also have the opportunity to step out into the back outdoor parts of the entire complex, where they find themselves in courtyards with varying height levels, greenery, and a sculpture exhibition.
The last two vessels represent the permanent exhibition of the Central European Forum. All spaces have overhead lighting complemented in several places with windows overlooking the tranquil space of the back courtyard, as well as Denisova Street. The spaces near the windows should naturally create relaxation corners with seating and the possibility of educational activities. Here, the visitor may choose to ascend to the higher floor, where they will reach the inserted space of "a house in a house," and then continue through a cascade of rooms until reaching the old building. Alternatively, they may choose to end their visit on the first floor and return via the same route. The intent is to create a circular route that guides the viewer through the entire area in both the new building and in the reconstructed spaces of the Museum of Art. However, the visitor always has the option to end or interrupt their visit without necessarily needing to retrace the entire return route again.
A unique world exists in the two underground floors, which are inaccessible to museum visitors. Both floors represent operational support. Due to the elevation between Denisova Street and the wall at the property boundary of more than 6 meters, it was possible to situate the service entrance and supplies from Kačenka Street. A transformer station for the entire area of the Central European Forum is also located at the entrance. Both basements follow the structural layout of the new building above ground, except for the front part at Denisova Street, where they step back just like the underground floors of the Museum of Art. In these parts are preserved cellars of the original historical houses, which will remain intact.
In the second underground floor, storage areas and repositories are divided into individual sections such as: transportation repository, museum print storage, archive, central furniture repository, central repository of paintings, prints, and sculptures are located. This floor also houses a photo studio spanning two floors, thus also reaching into the first underground floor. In both underground floors, there is a research room accessible at all times from the communication corridor connecting all underground spaces transversely. The corridor is concluded with entrances to the newly created boiler room and high and low voltage distribution room.
The first underground floor has a similar layout to the second basement, with the difference being that it contains library offices and exhibition preparation areas, illuminated and ventilated via an English courtyard. The corridor on this floor ends with a restoration workshop and entrance to the service area in the cellar of the old building.
The entire object is designed to be barrier-free in connection with the operational elevator, which ensures the transport of exhibition artifacts from the basement spaces and an elevator for disabled access traversing all floors in the old museum building. From this perspective, an operational connecting bridge has been created in the new building on the third floor, linking the transport elevator with the exhibition halls in the old building. This space, like the basements, is not accessible to the public.


Construction and material solution
The new building is fully conceived as a cast of monolithic reinforced concrete with a specific imprint of formwork panels. Given that all five objects rigorously follow the parceling of the original development, it will be very difficult to assemble atypical formwork. Similarly, it will be challenging to concrete the places of rounded edges and corners, which form an integral part of the author's proposal. Exposed concrete will be mixed with white marble aggregate to create bright, almost white exposed concrete. To achieve imprints in the concrete, unplaned boards of varying thickness will be used.
A separate issue will be the overhead skylight, allowing access to daylight. At this location, artificial lighting will also be installed. Therefore, it will be necessary to create a movable operational bridge that will ensure serviceability during repairs and the installation of reflectors, as well as the possibility to maintain the glass and shade the skylight. The overhead lighting is supplemented by several windows allowing for connection between the exterior and interior. The format of these openings is chosen as 3 x 3 m and 6 x 3 m, with undivided insulating glass as the filling.
Interior fittings will be made from planks and beams that will be white stained. This includes doors, shelves, racks, tables, and chairs or a mobile staircase located in the entrance hall. All spaces, including the furniture, should have a neutral appearance, serving as a background for the exhibited artifacts.