KUKURICA
reconstruction of the Hviezda boarding school
Bratislava - Nové Mesto, Kukučínova 38
2021

Detail

The Hviezda military boarding school, better known as Kukurica, has been a part of the Bratislava skyline for over 40 years. In 1978, it was designed by architects Cyril Sirotný and Ján Strcula as a landmark with a height of 82.2 m and 25 floors. The building has been in a state of disrepair for a long time and its owner, the Ministry of Defense of the Slovak Republic, has decided to give it a new chance. The Ministry approached FAD STU to select selected vertical studios in order to obtain a verification study for a facelift of a building for new purposes - offices and accommodation with a restaurant. The study examined possible solutions of the dispositional composition in several alternatives.
The overall tectonics of the building, the silhouette and the legibility of the architectural elements - these are the values of the original author's work, which we have elevated to design priorities. The author's intention is to preserve the original constructions, materials and details as much as possible. The design uses the original tiles, ceiling elements, ceilings, staircase structures, railings and works of art on the ground floor.

competition: 2021, 1st place
contractor: Faculty of Architecture and Design STU in Bratislava, Belluš´s studio
client: Ministry of Defense of the Slovak Republic

senior architects: Andrej ALEXY, Michal BOGÁR
junior architects: Veronika SLANIČANOVÁ, Petra SRNKOVÁ