Greek Catholic Museum and Study House, Nyíregyháza

Architects: Mihály Balázs, Dávid Török, Balázs Falvai, Márton Nagy
Text: Zoltán Bun
Photos: Antal Bánhegyesy

The denominational Museum and Study House, now celebrating its 20th anniversary, stands next to the St. Athanese Greek Catholic Theological College in Nyíregyháza, and was built after designs by Mihály Balázs, although the latter was co-authored by Dávid Török. The tension in the programme between the management and display of the museum’s collection and the accommodation of guests of a community with active external relations was just as much a fundamental design issue as the tension between the client’s desire to reflect both the traditional Greek Catholic identity and the autonomous creative desire. The new component seems to be immaterial, simultaneously old and new, representational and abstract in style, a composition that follows and contradicts tectonics, and yet is quite elaborate in all its constituents. Its significance, by „following tradition”, reflects both the Greek Catholics’ desire for uniqueness, identifiability and recognisability, whilst also bringing a sort of „conspicuousness” which is now a must-see for tourists. Its architects declared that they have embarked on a counter-building experiment with this project, whilst distancing themselves from both international museum architecture and the domestic trend: they are displaying a contemporary approach by aiming for the timelessness of their work.

General architecture: Mihály Balázs Architect Studio, dmb Studio
Architects: Mihály Balázs, Dávid Török, Balázs Falvai, Márton Nagy
Fellow architects: Csaba Riczu, Bettina Ónodi
Graphic design: Tünde Fekete, Miklós Meggyesi, Anna Táncos, Imre Erdős
Garden architecture: Borbála Gyüre, Evelin Tóth – Geum Works
Structure: Ákos Medek, Mihály Czövek – Medek Ltd.
HVAC: András Lantos, Anna Teöke – Lanterv Ltd.
Electrical engineering: Ferenc Rajkai, Richárd Radics – Hungaroproject Ltd.
Accessibility: András Pandula
Client: Greek Catholic Metropoloy
Main contractor: Palladian Ltd.