Building|Wall - Library in the convent complex

CTU in Prague - Faculty of Architecture

Project idea

The area of Prague's Albertov neighbourhood has always had a very specific atmosphere. Just bordering the walls of the New Town, with its steep hillside and proximity to Vltava river, a mix of old monastery complexes, gardens and lowrise building blocs conected by narrow streets, it has always been a place with a sense of mystery. In our work, we have focused on St. Elisabeth's Convent complex, which serves as a hospital but does not completely use the potential of its area. Marking the border between Albertov university campus and the predominantly housing area, with broad streets on two sides and a tiny steep street of cobblestone on the other one, it perfectly represents the neighbourhood‘s typology in smaller scale. With regard to its atmosphere, we decided to embrace the strength of mystery behind the brick walls, while creating acupunctural connections throughout the complex to connect it with the rest of the urban structure. We kept the poetics of the historical complex while removing the negative impacts of its resemblance to gated community.

Project description

Connection to the campus and a central position within the area led us to creating two libraries, one part serving the university and one for the municipality. Masses follow the concept of „building – wall“ through linear distribution on the edges of the area, creating multiplication of the convent typology itself. This reminiscence is strengthed by encircling the area by a continuous arcade connecting the convent and the new masses, thus recreating the concept of a quadrangle in a bigger scale. Orientation of the libraries follows the urban ties, with the municipal library formally communicating with the residential area and introducing the campus axis, and the university library relating to the rest of the campus. Both masses are emphasized vertically at the points communicating with the surroundings, keeping the rest "wall-likely" horizontal. In the sharply sloping terrain by the northern wall we created terraced orchard serving the convent, while keeping the entrances on this side minimal and partly hidden to embrace its intimity.

Technical information

Structural materials follow the same scheme throughout the area, buildings' walls are made of bricks and horizontal elements are made of concrete, the arcade is fully based on concrete structure.

Co-authors

Petr Maria Lhoťan, Jitka Rumlová, Ondřej Suk