KRENN HOUSE SQUARED

CTU in Prague - Faculty of Architecture

Project idea

Krenn's house was an integral part of the
Old Town Square. The question is
"To restore it or not to restore it?"
"Restore it in its original shape or look for other shapes?"
I respond to this by reinforcing the footprint of Krenn's original
house. Firstly, I follow it with my design in plan,
I'm not deviating from it. Second, I am reorienting the footprint of the original house to
the plane of the cut. What was important to me was the outline of Krenn and its internal
atrium, which I also translate into the cutting plane - it creates
a horizontal atrium.

Project description

The vertical atrium is preserved on the last two floors for
better illuminate the study rooms. In part of the outline of the original atrium
I propose a core vertical circulation with toilets.
The filling of this building is the Student Hub for Charles University.
In the part closer to the square there are large common study rooms,
which operate on the principle of a grandstand- they are partially illuminated by a horizontal atrium. Vertical communication is here in the form of open staircase, which follows the slope of the grandstand and the slope of the shape of the Lren house. It is also possible to reach the upper two floors.
The main entrance to the study rooms from the square is down the external stairs (level 1PP). The stairs again follow the shape of the Krenn footprint. On these stairs it is possible to sit and spend leisure time. In the part closer to the church of St. Nicholas Church is the circulation core, a two-storey
restaurant, administrative offices and individual or group study rooms.
The entrance to this part is from the level of the square.

Technical information

The construction of this house consists of steel trusses.
In the part near Nicholas the construction
is reinforced by a reinforced concrete core,
to which the iron concrete slabs and a truss suspended from them
structure. In the part facing the square, they act as a stiffening element
transverse trusses. These run across the entire height of the house
and are shaped like a section of the Krenn House without the atrium.

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