| construction: | 2025 |
| design: | Štěpán |
| photo: | Štěpán |
| location: | Prague, Vinohrady |
new and old
The entrance door to the apartment building initially seemed like a minor task, but it soon became clear that it would require striking a balance between various expectations. The original door had not survived; it had been replaced in the twentieth century by a standardised steel door. No drawings or precise documentation were available, only fragmentary recollections from eyewitnesses. In the Vinohrady neighbourhood, there was an opportunity to create a contemporary entrance; however, this did not align with the vision of the owners’ association, which favoured a more historicist solution. Conservationists, on the other hand, demanded either a completely modern design or a historical replica. The new design therefore had to strike a balance between these conflicting requirements.
The result is a solution that combines heritage with the present. The green, double-leaf, three-panel doors echo the building’s metal details and are complemented by brass sheets and fittings. The transom and the glazing of the door leaves provide a surface for a delicate botanical motif, sandblasted to match the decorative motifs found inside the building.
The doors are thus neither a replica nor a radical departure. They are a new addition to an old house, which has once again been given a dignified entrance.