Architecture of Quality and Timeless Value
24 ǀ POSITIV 3/2025
ARCHITEKTURA
In addition to your long-term activities within
the Society of Czech Architects, you also
successfully run the Prague based architectural
studio CASUA. What is its main focus, and how
would you describe its mission or creative credo?
CASUA was founded in 1990 as a consortium and later
became a limited liability company, established
by myself and civil engineer Aleš Poděbrad.
Our main credo with Aleš has always been the close
collaboration between architect and civil engineer
on the one hand, and a passion for building houses
on the other. At the beginning we designed houses
or parts of their reconstructions ourselves. Later,
we began designing more houses together as well as the
spaces between them. Today, we no longer design
houses alone, but as a team of people – and I must
thank everyone who has helped and continues to help
us.
You have been successfully running the studio for
35 years with more than 80 employees.
How do you still manage the challenges connected
with the Society of Czech Architects?
I started my career with Karel Prager, where there were
a hundred of us, and even at that time he was handling
very large commissions. With him I understood, right
at the very start of my career, how large projects are
organised – and perhaps that is the answer to your
question about how I manage it.
Today, CASUA is approaching a similar size, and together
with Aleš Poděbrad we are addressing succession within
the company. Since our children chose different paths,
in 2021 we joined the multinational group Obermeyer.
From our management team, we appointed architect
Jan Kyznar (36) and civil engineer František Kubašta (34)
as new managing directors – CEOs. I believe that
together with Eva Le Peutrec, who recently joined
us as Principal Architect, they will ensure continuity
and quality for the future.
You and your studio CASUA are working on the
forecourt of Ostrava’s Main Railway Station
in connection with the so-called “VRTka” (high-
speed rail). Could you explain what this involves
and what the people of Ostrava can look forward to?
We greatly appreciate having been entrusted with
preparing the design for the forecourt of Ostrava’s
Main Railway Station. It is another major project
alongside Steven Holl’s new concert hall, Robert
Konieczny’s conversion of the former slaughterhouse
into a city gallery PLATO, the DOV area in Vítkovice,
and the ongoing international competition for the new
football stadium at Bazaly. Last but not least, I would
also like to mention all the projects in the Nová Karolina
district. We are pleased that developments in Karolina
are being built according to our urban study, which
we prepared for the city years ago.
The forecourt of the Main Railway Station is a major
challenge. A new interchange terminal will be built
here for trams, buses, trolleybuses, long-distance
coaches and, of course, trains and high-speed rail.
The industrial halls of the former metal rolling mill
nearby are proposed for demolition. In their place,
we have designed a new urban structure of four
blocks, connecting to the historic development
of Přívoz by Camillo Sitte. The current roof of the
station forecourt, which was shaped according to the
geometry of the existing tram loop, will be replaced
with a new one shaped by the movement patterns
of passengers in the new interchange terminal.
As part of this new roof structure, the station area will
be expanded with staircases and escalators leading
into underground tunnels to the trains.
The final design will be presented at the Ostrava stand
at EXPO Real in Munich at the beginning of October.
Thank you for the interview.
Interview for POSITIV Business & Style magazine
prepared by Tadeáš Goryczka as part of the
Cabinet of Architecture, an independent project for
architecture, art and design.
A jury composed in this way is essenally
a reecon of the surrounding world –
of what is truly good and what can stand
comparison with the wider world.