Windows On The Vltava

2024 Author: David Durham | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-09 00:53

The embankments along the Vltava River are an important part of the Prague landscape, however, according to the Petr Janda / brainwork bureau, they exist in “brilliant isolation” from the city - they are mainly connected with the river. A separate harm to their development was caused by the disastrous flood of 2002.

Реконструкция Рашиновой набережной Фото © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice

The context required a balanced approach, so the embankment reconstruction project was developed not as a purely architectural one, but as a sociocultural one, and its first stage took 10 years, and the construction here was the last stage. This investment in public spaces in Prague, the largest since the 1989 revolution (budget 6.5 million euros), includes the conversion of 20 ice storage cellars into infrastructure. There are bars, cafes, clubs, various studios and workshops, art galleries, a branch of the library, a local community center, toilets.

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1/7 Reconstruction of Rashin's embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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2/7 Reconstruction of Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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3/7 Reconstruction of Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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4/7 Reconstruction of Rashin's embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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5/7 Reconstruction of Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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6/7 Reconstruction of Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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7/7 Reconstruction of Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice

Considering the variety of tenants, the architects have developed a discreet design for the interiors, which can be “customized” to one degree or another by the efforts of the new owners. The designers tried to find a balance between the uniformity of the “style” and the different image of the establishments located in the cellars. Architects in this case act as “curators”, helping tenants, but not striving for complete control.

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1/5 Reconstruction of Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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2/5 Reconstruction of Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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3/5 Reconstruction of the Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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4/5 Reconstruction of Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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5/5 Reconstruction of Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice

Six cellars on Rashinovaya Embankment now have elegant, almost perfectly circular entrances. Glass doors-windows with a rotating mechanism with a motor are inserted there, since the weight of these structures is several tons. Used organic glass 7 cm thick. It is most convenient for establishments to work inside when the windows are 60% open. Initially, the entrances were semicircular arches, but the "steps" from below brought their shape to a circle. Ventilation equipment, a flood protection system, etc. are hidden in the "steps", reminiscent of the technical staircases dismantled during the reconstruction.

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1/8 Reconstruction of Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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2/8 Reconstruction of Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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3/8 Reconstruction of Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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4/8 Reconstruction of Rashin's embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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5/8 Reconstruction of Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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6/8 Reconstruction of Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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7/8 Reconstruction of Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice
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8/8 Reconstruction of Rashin Embankment Photo © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice

The interior has been completely cleared of filling, including interfloor partitions, and all surfaces are covered with shotcrete. The new structures were made of monolithic concrete (stairs, etc.), other elements - for example, bar counters - of dark steel.

Реконструкция набережной Горейши Фото © Jakub Skokan & Martin Tůma / BoysPlayNice

Opposite Rashinova is the Goreyshi embankment. Its 14 cellars are now closed with curved steel "gates".

All cellars are designed to function with open doors in order to attract citizens and tourists to the embankments. In order to maintain a comfortable temperature inside, underfloor heating, an air conditioning system with heat recovery, infrared heaters are used. All equipment, including sockets, holders for hanging artworks (when using the cellar as a gallery), etc. carefully disguised.

20 cellars are the first phase of the project. In the future, the cellars on Dvorakova embankment will be reconstructed, outdoor furniture, including drinking fountains and underground trash bins, will be placed, freestanding toilets and street lamps will be placed. There will be a swimming pool on the water, continuing the Prague tradition of river baths, and even a cruise terminal, as well as floating toilets. At the same time, the number of moored vessels will decrease, and preference will be given to low-level floating craft that will not obstruct the views of the Vltava and the city.