Mini-crèche, Budapest, Naphegy Architect: Balázs Csóka Text: Kristóf Mánya Photos: Krisztina Bélavári, Balázs Zajti For several centuries, Budapest’s Naphegy and Krisztinaváros districts — both wedged between Buda Castle and the Hillside — functioned as the “back gardens” of Hungarian history. Although the fragmented building patterns and detached blocks floating on wooded and landscaped plots create […]

Mini-nursery, Tatabánya-Felsőgalla Architects: László Román, Zsuzsanna Nagy Text: Miklós Okrutay Photos: Dorka Gyepes Public education buildings are a remarkably successful area of contemporary Hungarian architecture, with kindergartens and nurseries leading the way and winning awards one after another. The reason for this may lie in the design programme: despite the relatively small scales and proportions, […]

Fügefa Lutheran Kindergarten, Kelenföld Architects: Árpád Szabó, Balázs Vizer Text: Eszter Götz Photos: Tamás Fenes The Lutheran community in the capital city had long felt the painful absence of kindergartens in Buda, as there used to be several in Pest, but none in Buda since World War II. Under an agreement reached in 2020, the […]

Gyöngyszem Branch Kindergarten, Budapest Architects: Csaba Nagy, Károly Pólus Text: Zita Pelle Photos: Balázs Danyi The reconstruction project of the Gyöngyszem Branch Kindergarten in Budapest’s 13th district goes far beyond a local institutional renovation: the project has become a European-level model for the contemporary recycling as well as a sustainable transformation of five-decade-old prefab structures. […]

Kiskastély (Minor Mansion) Nursery School, Keszthely Architect: György Kisberzsenyi-Nagy Text: Kristóf Mánya Photos: Tamás Vörös The team of architects coordinated by György Kisberzsenyi-Nagy converted a manor house illegally occupied by homeless people into a Roman Catholic nursery school by developing a solution based on a somewhat inverted logic in order to maximize the space available […]

Reception Building, Simontornya Architect: Péter Zilahi Text: Attila Csóka Photos: Attila Gulyás The uniform development of our settlements requires long-term strategic planning, in which the co-operation between the town leaders of Simontornya and the P8 workshop has already demonstrated significant results. Through slow and patient work, the designers built the trust necessary to create a […]

Bohn Mélyépítő Company Headquarters, Budapest Architect: Bence Turányi Text: Mária Tatai Photos: Zsolt Batár Whilst the size and location of the company headquarters built on Naphegy in Buda do not make it stand out from its mixed-use surroundings, its distinctly “modern” appearance certainly does: its square-shaped prism enclosed in a white steel structure creates a […]

Forest Kindergarten, Pinzberg, Germany Architect: Rainer Hirth Text: Eszter Götz Photos: Sebastian Kolm, Grub am Forst A nature-oriented forest kindergarten has been built on a beautiful clearing in the forest near Pinzberg. Sustainable building materials from the surrounding area were mainly used: wood damaged by beetles, straw bales for insulation, and clay for the interior […]

Text: Attila Turi Architect Imre Makovecz was the most significant Hungarian master builder of the last third of the 20th century. If we view architecture not only as an engineering and artistic activity aimed at creating objects, but also as a healing act aimed at community building and improving community and social relations, we will […]

Makó, Municipal Thermal and Adventure Baths Complex Text: Judit Gerencsér The image of the town of Makó is fundamentally defined by the architecture of Imre Makovecz, thanks to its management back in those days. The magical architectural complex named Hagymatikum stands out even among the architect’s other completed buildings with its conceptuality, richness of thoughts, […]

Text: Imre Makovecz The interior and exterior spaces of the planned church, the bridges built inside the church, and the saints and damned souls walking on them all come together to represent the world of salvation and judgment for those arriving at the church. At the intersection of the bridges stands Archangel Michael, bearing the […]

Text: Eszter Götz In 2015, a decision unprecedented in Hungarian culture was made: Government Resolution No. 2022/2015 (XII. 29.) on the preservation of Imre Makovecz’s oeuvre established the Imre Makovecz Fund for the implementation of plans and renovation of buildings that form part of Imre Makovecz’s heritage. (XII. 29.), which, in addition to the worthy […]