Czech Republic: The Latest Architecture and News

On the 200th anniversary of Gregor Mendel’s birth, CHYBIK + KRISTOF will bring the historic St. Augustin Abbey greenhouse to life in Brno. As the location where the notorious scientist and father of modern genetics conducted his pioneering experiments, the greenhouse is located in the 14th-century Augustinian monastery’s gardens. After the original building was swept away by a storm in the 1870s, the team aims to return the significant site to Brno’s old city in 2022.

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Located in the sustainability zone of EXPO 2020 Dubai, the Czech pavilion, designed by Formosa AA and R/FRM, is an invitation for discovery. Raising questions concerning desert cultivation, it integrates and exposes the S.A.W.E.R. system cultivation plant. Visible technologies form the main formal and visual components of the pavilion.

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The Inspireli Awards have announced the winners of the student competition for the Czech Embassy in Addis Ababa. The fourth year of the competition offered students a unique opportunity to design in Ethiopia. This special competition category was announced by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic in cooperation with the Faculty of Civil Engineering CTU in Prague, Department of Architecture.

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Ondřej Císler from Aoc architects and Petr Tej from the Klokner Institute at CTU in Prague have designed a bridge over the Dřetovice stream in Vrapice, near the city of Kladno in the Czech Republic.

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The London based Heatherwick Studio, have unveiled plans to design their first venture in the Czech Republic, in historic Prague. The project consists of regenerating an important site and create a mix of retail, office and public spaces.

How can we support creative answers to current and future challenges the constantly growing population of urban areas will face in the near future? This is just one of many questions and topics which have been discussed during the international project Shared Cities: Creative Momentum in the past four years. Now the time has come to present the accomplishments. An international festival called Shared Cities: The Finale will take place on October 2nd and 3rd in the city of Prague, Czech Republic.

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Danish architecture firm Henning Larsen created a new proposal for the Ostrava House of Culture in the Czech Republic. As the the second place winner in an international competition, the project's offset concrete frames set up the form of the new Ostrava Concert Hall as they join together with the existing structure. The design emphasizes openness and connection to the outdoors in the midcentury campus to craft a quiet icon for the city.

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Architects CHYBIK + KRISTOF have broken ground on a new modular architecture research center in the Czech Republic. Partnering with Czech module manufacturer KOMA MODULAR, the project was made to introduce a new system of modular construction. The design celebrates architecture and organic shapes through the vacancies between each element in modular construction.

Steven Holl Architects and Architecture Acts has won an international competition for the design of a concert hall in Ostrava, Czech Republic. Chosen by six of the seven-person jury, the new 1,300-seat concert hall is situated next to the existing House of Culture, and is designed as “a perfect acoustic instrument in its case.”

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Benthem Crouwel Architects has been announced as the winner of a competition to design a new residential district in Prague, presented in collaboration with local firm RA15. The competition, organized by Penta Real Estate, saw 160 entries distilled down to 44, and then 5 finalists. In a unanimous verdict, the jury praised Benthem Crouwel’s decision to integrate a large, publically-accessible park into the project.

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CHYBIK + KRISTOF Architects has begun construction on the Lahofer Winery in the Czech Republic, seeking to create a space “symbiotic with the surrounding nature of the vineyards.” Encompassing a winemaking facility, visitor center, tasting room, and rooftop amphitheater, the scheme will be a fusion of tradition, nature, and modern winemaking practices.

The scheme’s three interconnected structures vary in height, lying under an undulating roof serving as a public amphitheater, hosting concerts and cultural events for visitors and locals. The scheme responds to the architectural language of the Moravian landscape, with a lightened volume and aesthetic that avoids impacting too heavily on the landscape.

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If you're a student looking for an opportunity to make your mark and display your vision and direction for your career, this recently launched competition is definitely worth looking into. The Czech Republic's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has offered an exceptional invitation to create a proposal for a new embassy in the capital of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa. The embassy is going to be built according to the student's proposal. As the organization committee sees this as one of the largest opportunities to support talented students in the creation of such a prestigious project, the competition has been opened up to students from all universities around the world.

Prague's architecture is known for a patchwork of buildings ranging in styles and eras. A recent proposal for the redesign of the Trojska Skola aims to supplement a similar cohesive attitude to the space. Titled, Dissonant Unity, the project designed by Stefano Corbo Studio explores the ways to incorporate new programs and increased public space to an existing grammar and primary school with an attached sports center, auditorium, and cafeteria.

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Istanbul-based studio Superspace has proposed a design for Prague’s Victory Square that transforms the dead zone in the middle of Prague into a space flourishing with nature and social activities. The simple but effective solution inverts traffic and pedestrian access to create a green urban center, where markets, art festivals and even wintertime ice-skating can take place. Tall, local evergreen trees would be planted in the horseshoe shape surrounding the inner ring, creating an iconic visual impact while shielding the community space from the noise of the busy traffic area beyond.

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When you think of your favorite spot to grab a beer, what architectural features come to mind? Is it the swanky furniture, themed artwork, or the heavily designed cocktail menu? Today, the aesthetics of bars are now as much a draw as the drinks themselves. From movie set inspired spaces to rooftops that offer spectacular city views, we’ve compiled a list of nine bars and beer gardens that every architect needs to cross off their list.

A design team under the direction of Chybik + Kristof has won the international competition to design a new administrative center for the Czech Forestry Commission in Hradec Králové. The project focuses on a symbiotic relationship between the building and the adjacent forest, where the natural landscape outside begins to mingle with the office spaces within.

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Richard Meier & Partners has unveiled the design of the Oaks Prague Villas, the firm’s first residential project in the Czech Republic. Located outside of Prague in the Nebřenice countryside, the villas will join the Oaks Frontline Apartments (also designed by Richard Meier & Partners) as well as structures by top architects including Eva Jiřičná and John Pawson in creating a new modern residential community called the Oaks Prague Development.

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Miralles Tagliabue EMBT has been announced as the winner of a competition for the design of Artenoah, a biodiversity center in Rehau, Germany that will chronicle and serve that species-rich green belt along the border of Germany and the Czech Republic. Built into the forested highlands of the Neuhausen district, the masterplan consists of a series of thematic outdoors spaces and a central pavilion with an undulating form that allows it to blend into the surrounding landscape.

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