Akademia Park Officium / Vikar&Lukacs Architects Studio

Architects: Vikar&Lukacs Architects Studio
Location: Budapest, Hungary
Project team: András Vikár, István Lukács, Árpád Gál, Tamás Bencsik
Client: SCD Group
Project Year: 2011
Project area: 17,000 sqm
Photographs: Tamás Bujnovszky, Tibor Zsitva

Built in 1897, This fantastic building, functioned as a military school in the past. The original house was almost 100 m long than a sport and event hall was attached to it in 1926. In 1941 and in the following decades a new wing for kitchen and restaurant area and for further functions were joined to the main building.

Our idea was to demolish the attached parts and rethink the building while retaining its original form. According to our plans it was completed with a glass facade paralel with the length of the old building making the new floor plan to meet the requirements of modern times. Our aim was to clearly divide the old and the new parts while making them integrated.

On the roof level the roof structure and the roof covering were completely rebuilt. Similarly to the facade the old design remained on the park side while facing the Riadó street a huge roof terrace/patio was made by opening the glass facade.

The brick and stone facade of the original building was entirely renewed, both the reformed main entrance and hall kept their functions and a new entrance was opened to the Riadó street. Either the architectural or the engineering solutions satisfy the highest demands. The plans were qualificated as the BREEAM EXCELLENT and the building itself got three prizes of the INTERNATIONAL PROPERTY AWARD 2011.