Ivo Oberstein
*18. 5. 1935 – Zdice, Czech Republic
†6. 1. 2024, Czech Republic
Biography
Ivo Oberstein was a Czech architect, urban planner, and university educator. His most significant work is the urban planning project of the Southwest City in Prague. He spent his childhood in Zdice and Letňany. His parents were technical officer Maxmilián Oberstein (1900–71) and seamstress Hana Obersteinová (1910–93).
In 1959, he graduated from the Faculty of Architecture at the Czech Technical University in Prague and then worked for two years at the Regional Design Institute in Karlovy Vary. Subsequently, he worked in the Office of the Chief Architect of the Capital City of Prague (1961–71) and the Design Institute of Construction of the Capital City of Prague, where he led Atelier 7 (1971–89).
In 1967, he and his team entered the competition for the urban concept of the Southwest City in Prague, which Ivo Oberstein and his team won the following year. Subsequently, a detailed territorial plan for the entire area was created by the team led by Ivo Oberstein, and between 1978 and 1989, the construction of the Southwest City took place according to the original urban concept. After the regime change in 1989, Ivo Oberstein continued to collaborate on the development of the Southwest City, where, for example, between 1997 and 2002, he was the author of the urban design for Sun Square and the Prague 13 Town Hall.
Like the vast majority of other large residential complexes built in Czechoslovakia during the 1950s to 1980s, the Southwest City was constructed as a panel housing estate. Ivo Oberstein did not have a very warm relationship with panel houses at the time of the construction of the Southwest City: "I hated panel houses because they were a degenerate product of a totalitarian era. But I did everything with my team to humanize them and to solve the public environment of streets, squares, and calm residential spaces within the blocks as well as possible. Fortunately, by the 1980s, no one was interfering much with us anymore because many architects no longer wanted to work on housing estates; they sought other tasks – party houses, hotels."
From 1989 to 1994, he served as the Chief Architect of the Capital City of Prague, being the first chief architect after the regime change in December 1989 until the position was abolished in 1994. After leaving the position of chief architect, he worked as a research and teaching staff member at the Faculty of Architecture at the Czech Technical University in Prague.
Ivo Oberstein was a Czech architect, urban planner, and university educator. His most significant work is the urban planning project of the Southwest City in Prague. He spent his childhood in Zdice and Letňany. His parents were technical officer Maxmilián Oberstein (1900–71) and seamstress Hana Obersteinová (1910–93).
In 1959, he graduated from the Faculty of Architecture at the Czech Technical University in Prague and then worked for two years at the Regional Design Institute in Karlovy Vary. Subsequently, he worked in the Office of the Chief Architect of the Capital City of Prague (1961–71) and the Design Institute of Construction of the Capital City of Prague, where he led Atelier 7 (1971–89).
In 1967, he and his team entered the competition for the urban concept of the Southwest City in Prague, which Ivo Oberstein and his team won the following year. Subsequently, a detailed territorial plan for the entire area was created by the team led by Ivo Oberstein, and between 1978 and 1989, the construction of the Southwest City took place according to the original urban concept. After the regime change in 1989, Ivo Oberstein continued to collaborate on the development of the Southwest City, where, for example, between 1997 and 2002, he was the author of the urban design for Sun Square and the Prague 13 Town Hall.
Like the vast majority of other large residential complexes built in Czechoslovakia during the 1950s to 1980s, the Southwest City was constructed as a panel housing estate. Ivo Oberstein did not have a very warm relationship with panel houses at the time of the construction of the Southwest City: "I hated panel houses because they were a degenerate product of a totalitarian era. But I did everything with my team to humanize them and to solve the public environment of streets, squares, and calm residential spaces within the blocks as well as possible. Fortunately, by the 1980s, no one was interfering much with us anymore because many architects no longer wanted to work on housing estates; they sought other tasks – party houses, hotels."
From 1989 to 1994, he served as the Chief Architect of the Capital City of Prague, being the first chief architect after the regime change in December 1989 until the position was abolished in 1994. After leaving the position of chief architect, he worked as a research and teaching staff member at the Faculty of Architecture at the Czech Technical University in Prague.
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