Since 2017, the second largest city in Hungary, Debrecen, has been a sister city of Brno, the second largest city in the Czech Republic. This spring, Debrecen is going to present the vibrant life of Brno through a series of cultural events, including a model and photo exhibition of modern public and private buildings constructed during the 1920s and 1930s in the Czech town. The location of the exhibition is called Szárító műhely, a practical venue of the Department of Architecture of the Faculty of Engineering (MK) of the University of Debrecen (DE).
The head of the Department of Architecture at DE MK said that a total of nine 3D-printed scale models of buildings that have made a significant contribution to the cityscape of Brno, along with photos and explanatory texts, would be on display.
“The state of Czechoslovakia, which was established after the First World War, underwent a period of enormous development between the two world wars. This process had a particularly strong effect on Brno, as it suddenly transformed from a medium-sized town into a major industrial and commercial center. It was then that a center of modern buildings were constructed there, designed by some of the most renowned Czech architects and other nationals of the period. The hundreds of buildings that were completed at that time continue to represent an outstanding architectural quality, even by international standards,” said Tamás Szentirmai.
Associate professor Szentirmai underlined that the Brno municipal administration, by recognizing this, has invested a lot of research during the past decade to identify and save the buildings from deterioration and destruction. The material on display at the exhibition is also the result of this effort.
“It is often believed and voiced that the architecture of the 20th century was too simple and rather bleak. Here, we can see the exact opposite of this very clearly: these houses can be colorful, exciting and beautiful,” said the Department Head.
The Vice Mayor of Debrecen responsible for cultural affairs delivered an address at the event, saying that the way Brno treats its modern built heritage could be a good example and a lesson for us in Debrecen.
This endeavor was clearly indicated last year, for example, by the Mikolás 100 exhibition, which commemorated the architect Tibor Mikolás. As regards this year, we now have another anniversary coming up: József Borsos was born 150 years ago. Soon, starting on the 18th, there will be events in the city to mark the occasion,” said István Puskás.
The vice mayor also recalled that a similar chamber exhibition of the life's work of the Debrecen architect István Sajó had been presented at the Faculty of Architecture of the University of Brno last year, and that was how the idea of presenting the work in Debrecen was born then.
The exhibition of models from Brno will be open until April 8, from 10 am to 6 pm on Mondays and from 10 am to 2 pm on Tuesdays.
Press Centre - OCs
