Project for the reconstruction of the former weaving factory as a museum-memorial for Holocaust Survivors in the village of Brně

Saint Petersburg State University of Technology and Design

Project idea

The main idea of the project is to create a conceptual proposal for the development of an entire museum complex, and the commemoration and creation of a memorial to Schindler's Ark, the Shoah and the Löw-Beer weaving mill so that visitors can learn about the history of the site. The museum will have a capacity of 100,000 people per year, with possible expansion.

The reconstruction of former industrial facilities into a modern museum is manifested through the interaction of historical heritage with new extensions and buildings according to the principle of “contrasting complementarity.” A modern glass overpass will connect the two buildings of the Schindler’s Ark Museum – the Schindler’s Ark Building and the German SS Garrison Building. The new space will have a special effect on visitors.

Since the museum plans to host school excursion groups, it is equally important to attract the attention of the little viewer not by scaring him, but by telling the story of people who did not lose heart in difficult times; the story of a hero who, contrary to the country’s politics and ideology, saved more than 1,200 lives; the story of the factory that provided 1,200 jobs for Schindler's Jews. Our attention has become, in a broad sense, the most important cognitive resource that needs to not only be attracted, but also retained, so it is necessary to direct the focus of both the adult viewer and the young one to cover our issue.

To summarize, we can say that the project should not only include stories and facts from the past, but also interact with the viewer, conduct a conversation through time between witnesses of what happened and museum visitors, so that history is not forgotten and the events of the past are not repeated in the future.

Project description

The project site is located in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic in the village of Brnenec, formerly Brunlitz. The territory of the museum complex is determined by the Svitava River and the Belsky Stream and has a total area of 4 hectares. The main entrance for visitors is located in the northern part, next to the historical gate. The dismantling of unnecessary warehouse outbuildings made it possible to clear the area in front of the entrance and make a stop for tourist buses, as well as organize access to an underground parking lot with 90 spaces for cars.

The reconstruction of former industrial facilities into a modern museum is manifested through the interaction of historical heritage with new extensions and buildings according to the principle of “contrasting complementarity.” A modern glass overpass will connect two museum buildings - the Schindler's Ark Building and the German SS Garrison Building. The etched glass panels will be mounted on a steel frame with additional diagonal reinforcements. This solution will provide a comfortable transition between the exhibition halls of different museum buildings.

Partly guided in the project by the Venetian Charter, I would like to give every visitor to the future museum the opportunity to feel the subtle synergy of preserved historical elements and new modern architectural solutions.

The project also includes the dismantling of part of the wall to create an entrance portal to the main building of the museum. The new design proposal is to create a decorative element using a variation of Flemish brickwork with holes. In total, 1200 holes are made in this element, which symbolize saved lives, light and hope.

The former spinning mill building, which will later become a community center, is the best preserved and does not require significant reconstruction. The open plan allowed for 7,000 sq.m. of space in the building. a pavilion for temporary exhibitions, a new Bauhaus weaving workshop, spaces for educational lectures, and a cinema hall with 270 seats.

The cinema section of the building underwent the most significant structural changes: it was necessary to replace the post-and-beam system with long-span structures to ensure an unobstructed visual experience. Since the roof structure is shed, it was important to take into account that the linear element of the supporting structure had high rigidity in the horizontal plane. To ensure good acoustics, the best solution was to create a fractional ceiling plane with an opening angle of sound reflection.

As for the identity of the project and its symbolic places of attraction, there are several special places. Firstly, this is the central square with the solitaire oak; once upon a time, it was at this place that Oskar Schindler, the day before the end of the war, was given a ring with an engraving in Hebrew “who saves one life saves the whole world.” Around the tree there is a ring of brass letters in the paving, with the phrase quoted in the languages of the nationalities of the rescued Jews, these were mainly Polish Jews, but there were also Jews from Czechoslovakia, Germany, England, the USSR, and other countries (Hungary, the Netherlands, Yugoslavia, France and Italy). I considered this symbol to be the main and unique one, reflecting this particular place, so it was also reflected in the museum’s logo.

The project also has a wall of names. This is the 120-meter-long wall of the former spinning mill, where all 1,200 names that Itzhak Stern wrote down on the so-called “Schindler’s list” are recorded.

The museum also contains the Garden of Memory, an open-air memorial in honor of the 42 Jews who perished in the winter of 1945.

I also decided that in the project of the museum-memorial complex it was necessary to propose a synagogue project. The synagogue is located in the eastern part of the territory and is oriented towards the lands of Israel, strictly southeast. The presence of a synagogue on the territory of the complex is a tribute to the fact that this particular place contributed to saving the lives of Jews. Therefore, this is a kind of connection with the past, showing that there is no anti-Semitism here. The synagogue is open to all visitors of any denomination; it is only important to show respect for the views of those with whom you are visiting.

As a result of the work done, the main tasks of designing a museum complex based on the wishes of the competition organizers and technical specifications were identified and conceptually solved. The project includes landscape design, architectural solutions for reconstruction and redevelopment, as well as general interior solutions.

Technical information

According to the construction passports of the objects, the structural system of buildings is combined. The buildings have mixed structural elements - monolithic reinforced concrete, solid brick, metal beams, shed roof.

The internal load-bearing walls of varying thickness are made of mixed masonry made of rubble stone and solid brick, fired with lime-cement mortar. Internal partitions are made of solid brick, fired with lime-cement mortar, or from hollow, more modern brick and fittings.

The ceiling structure, assembled from reinforced concrete elements, is supported by columns and walls along the perimeter, on which beams are placed that carry the ceiling slabs. The post-beam system is very diverse - I-beam, monolithic reinforced concrete and wood.

To implement new modern architectural solutions, the project uses etched glass panels that are mounted on a steel frame to create a translucent and lightweight structure for the elevated passage between the two museum buildings. The structure is supported internally by load-bearing aluminum beams and steel diagonal braces.

In the project for the reconstruction of the former spinning mill into a community center, part of the post-and-beam structure is dismantled with the further installation of long-span metal trusses along the shed roof. This is necessary for the competent design of a cinema hall with 270 seats, to ensure an unobstructed visual range and create the correct acoustics. The new steel structure will support the existing portion of the building's shed roof above the cinema hall.

For the synagogue project, glass fiber reinforced concrete is used as a finishing material and metal frames as a structural system. GFRC as a finishing material for synagogue facades has all the necessary qualities, since in comparison with ordinary concrete, the material has a significantly higher compressive strength, bending and tensile strength, impact strength, and frost resistance. It is waterproof, has a high degree of adhesion to ordinary concrete and is highly resistant to cracking. This is an environmentally friendly and safe material that does not contain harmful components and belongs to the category of fireproof materials.

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