Municipal Cultural Center in Dolný Kubín

/honourable mention in architecture competition/authors: Jakub Kopec, Matúš Bišťan, Jakub Števanka/cooperation: Klára Zahradníčková (landscape architecture), Gabriela Heffnerová (air conditioning), Marek Lenický (heating, cooling)/2024

The Municipal Cultural Center in Dolní Kubín is an excellent example of timeless interdisciplinary cooperation between an architect, an artist and associated professions. It is manifested in the overall complexity of the implementation and its continuous use to the present day. The intention of this proposal is not to conserve the original building or its radical reconstruction, but rather to sensitively update and adapt it to current environmental, technological and operational requirements, including a more significant involvement in the city's public space. We perceive the original building as an open system, which is clearly visible when comparing the implemented building and the original plan. We distinguish three basic spaces in it (theater, variety hall and administrative building) and programmable intermediate spaces (foyer with associated functions, outdoor atrium and terraces). The basic spaces are essentially unchangeable, undergoing only minimal modifications. Their program is permanent, which is why we consider them as heated rooms that are additionally insulated from the outside. On the contrary, the intermediate spaces allow for more dynamic use with a greater degree of adaptability and programmability, representing a temperate interior or a seasonally usable exterior. They are an active interface between the basic spaces and the public space of the city.