Architecture of Quality and Timeless Value
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ARCHITECTURE
Architecture of Quality
and Timeless Value
What kind of architecture holds true value and withstands the pressures of both the market
and me? What benets does close collaboraon between an architect and a structural engineer
bring?
Oleg Haman – architect, entrepreneur and chairman of the Society of Czech Architects (OA) –
reveals how the organisaon showcases top Czech architecture both at home and abroad, while
also discussing succession in large studios. And what will the proposed design for the forecourt
of Ostrava’s Main Railway Staon look like?
What benefit does the Society of Czech Architects
bring to the wider public and to architects?
Through its membership in the International Union
of Architects (UIA) based in Paris, the Society
has the right to nominate candidates for the UIA’s
international awards. Thanks to this, in 1969 Karel
Hubáček received the UIA’s Perret Prize for the Ještěd
transmitter, than 54 years later Vladimír Šlapeta was
awarded the Jean Tschumi Prize for architectural
criticism.
With the upcoming UIA Congress in Barcelona 2026,
we will once again be nominating Czech architects for
international recognition.
Each autumn, the Society organises the Grand Prix
of Architects (GPA). I see this as your “flagship”
event. How did it begin and why was it created?
The GPA was founded in 1993 after the split
of Czechoslovakia as a competition and showcase
of the best completed architecture of the past year.
Alena Šrámková, chairwoman of the society of czech
architects, stood at the very beginning of this showcase.
A distinctive feature of the GPA is its international
five-member jury, which may include only one Czech
and one Slovak architect. The remaining three members
are foreigners and can outvote the Czech and Slovak
representatives. In this way, the jury acts as a mirror
of the outside world, showing us what is truly good
and what stands comparison on the international stage.
What was the GPA 2024 like and what can we look
forward to this year?
The quality of participation in the competition
is determined by the composition of the jury. The more
distinguished the jurors, the greater the interest
in taking part. Rafi Segal was elected as chairman of the
jury and carried out his role with great insight. The large
blue GPA cube was awarded to the pedestrian bridge
linking Holešovice and Karlín. The bridge not only
connects two parts of the city, but also symbolically
links the profession of the architect with that of the
structural engineer. I see this as the key message
behind the international jury’s decision.
This year’s jury consists of four women and one man:
Ana Luengo, Špela Videčnik, Andrea Bacová, Anna
Svobodová, and international star Daniel Libeskind.
I believe we have much to look forward to! It is difficult
to predict which of the 155 projects will take home
the main prize this year.
pro tramvaje, autobusy, trolejbusy, dálkové autobusy a sa-
mozřejmě vlaky a VRT. Průmyslové haly bývalé válcovny
kovů v těsné blízkosti nádraží navrhujeme ke zbourání.
Na jejich místě jsme navrhli novou urbanistickou struk-
turu čtyř bloků, které navazují na historickou zástavbu
Přívozu od Camillo Sitte. Dnešní zastřešení předprostoru
nádraží, které tvarově vychází z geometrie stávající smyč-
ky tramvaje, bude nahrazeno novým, které bude tvarově
vycházet z pohybu cestujících v novém přestupním termi-
nálu. V rámci tohoto nového zastřešení dojde k rozšíření
plochy nádraží o schodiště a eskalátory do podzemních
příchodů k vlakům.
Výsledné řešení prezentujeme na stánku Ostravy
na EXPO Real v Mnichově na začátku října.
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Rozhovor pro magazín POSITIV Business & Style připravil
Tadeáš Goryczka v rámci Kabinetu architektury, nezávis-
lého projektu pro architekturu, umění a design.